


The Scarlet Rose

by MySoulReader



Category: RWBY
Genre: Action, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Attempt at Humor, Comedy, F/M, Family Reunions, Gen, Helpless Jaune, Jaune needs a babysitter, Mercenaries, Mysterious Past, Ruby is a badass, Sadistic Glynda
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2020-04-03
Packaged: 2021-02-18 08:08:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 23,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21990967
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MySoulReader/pseuds/MySoulReader
Summary: Search—Ruby RoseVale—Daughter of Taiyang Xiao Long (Teacher at Signal academy); location unknown.Atlas—Infighter within the kingdom (7 registered sightings); location unknown.Mistral—Huntress for hire (unregistered by the council); location unknown.Vacuo—Not applicable.“Sir, remind me again. Why are we seeking out this child?”“She shows potential, Glynda.”“Potential for what?”“To end the war.”
Comments: 10
Kudos: 71





	1. Ruby Rose

**Author's Note:**

> Fair warning; this story is entirely for writing practice, so the chapters will likely contain one or two scenes and be fairly short. Also, I'm writing this on-the-fly, so things may be out of place or make little sense in some parts. Just bear with me and we'll get through it.
> 
> Anyway, happy reading!

Heels clicking on metal. A sure sign to Ozpin as to who was at his door. Setting his mug down, he waited for a patterned knock. Instead, his expected visitor opened the door on her own accord. Despite that, the grey-haired man said nothing about the unannounced intrusion.

Upon seeing the woman’s peeved scowl, no one would dare disturb the blonde woman. Yet all she did was stride over to the well-dressed man’s impromptu desk and flick her black cape aside, revealing the purple coloration on its underside. “As you have requested, I retrieved one Ruby Rose from Vale. Anything else I can do for you?” She asked in a monotone voice withholding an ocean of fury and unreleased stress.

Reaching for a steampunk-style cane, Ozpin asked, “Glynda, would you mind bringing up all the files on Miss Rose?” Already getting to work on the task, the witch-themed woman took a rectangular piece of metal from the desk and expanded it to reveal a holographic screen. “After that, you may… intimidate her.”

Nodding at her directives, the blonde placed the screen on the desk and spun it to face the old man. On the screen, there were four boxes brought up, though one was empty. Not surprised by this, the man tapped on the first box, showing the faces of two blondes, a woman with a white cloak, and a red-eyed man. The second box had blurry photos of a scarlet bullet rocketing away and static-filled videos of a cloaked figure slicing down robots with a scythe. Left for last, the final box had a picture of an intricate black mask with red accents instead of a headshot for a profile. 

Having gone over the information several times beforehand, Glynda withdrew her riding crop from her sleeve. “Sir, remind me again. Why are we seeking this child out?”

Keeping his eyes on the screen, the old man replied, “She shows potential.”

“Potential for what?” The blonde inquired, failing to hide the sliver of curiosity that had shown through her tone.

“Potential to end the war.”

Deciding to leave that statement without any further comment, the witch turned toward the door and made small strides toward it. “I will be done when you hear my riding crop,” she said before leaving the metal box of an office.

Alone with the database, Ozpin enlarged the pictures of the blondes and the mask. Humming to himself, he made a search for the female blonde, giving him several records, many times more numerous than what he was given for Ruby Rose. Scanning over the other girl’s profiles, he came upon an application. Without any second thoughts, he approved it before closing all the files.

Picking up the device, he sauntered to the door and left his mug sitting on the desk. Glancing back at it, he moved his cane into the nook of his arm so he could carry it too. Finished with the room, the old man left it to retreat down the hall where a dimly lit room remained. Just as he arrived, the crack of a whip against metal sounded throughout the hall.

“But… there is someone here who would like to meet you.” When the disgruntled voice of Glynda was heard, the door slid open to reveal Ozpin waiting merrily in his black suit trimmed with green.

Handing the blonde the device, the old man took a seat at the metal table where a young girl was handcuffed to. Taking stock of the girl, silver eyes stood out amongst her pale skin. Past that, he took note of the twisted cloak linked with a rose emblem and a pair of goggles hanging around her neck. Meanwhile, the rest of her outfit he cared little for. Her grey undershirt and black sleeves with thorned vine trims were overlooked, same with her matching skirt and the knee-high boots she adorned. Although those were hidden beneath the table with her leggings and the pouch strapped to her waist as a makeshift belt.

“Ruby Rose… you have silver eyes,” Ozpin said, breaking the brief silence between the three in the chamber.

“Um…”

“So,” he cut off, “tell me where you learned to do this.” Gesturing with his mug, he pointed to Glynda. The tablet she was holding turned on with a video of the black-haired girl swinging around a scythe larger than herself.

Glancing between the two adults, Ruby gulps. “My teacher, Maria.”

“Does this Maria have a last name?” The witch interjected before Ozpin could inquire for himself.

“Not that I know of.” The old man couldn’t tell if she was lying, so he took it at face value.

“Maria taught you to use one of the most impractical weapons among Huntsmen?” He asked, returning the girl’s attention to himself. Taking a sip from his mug, he added, “Only one active Huntsman uses a scythe across all of Remnant.”

Lowering her head, the black-haired girl looked at her cuffed wrists. “She used them,” she muttered. Her hair ruffled over her right eye, brushing along the rim of her goggles. “Never a Huntsman though.”

Humming with a new train of thoughts passing through his mind, the man in a suit adjusted his grip on his cane. “So, what is an adorable girl such as yourself swinging around a scythe for?” Seeing the girl raising her head, he leaned in to look into her eyes.

“You’re still talking to me?” When Glynda slowly blinked, she took that as the most confirmation she would be getting. “Oh, well, I just have to, I guess.” She paused waiting for another question, but instead, Ozpin motioned for her to continue with his mug-hand. “Fighting to survive is what I know. Since I was taken away, I lived off the land and learned to fight around the world. So, I just picked up the weapon when I got the chance and kept up with it.”

Turning to Glynda, Ozpin made eye contact with her and both nodded. They already could piece Ruby’s given story together with their database. Shifting back to face the girl, the old man looked at her eyes, which held nothing but silver eyes. Not a single clue to the truth as she stared right back at him.

“Have you ever thought about being a Huntress?” He posed when his small glasses drooped down the bridge of his nose.

“When I was little...er,” she softly spoke in a shaky voice.

“What if I offered you a spot a Beacon academy?” He added, watching her eyes carefully.

Yet, her eyes just stayed locked onto Ozpin’s own; she seemed to be a wolf staring down at a rabbit. “Why me? You clearly know about me, so why would you risk another student’s placement for me?”

“I believe you’re more than what you’ve done.” He stated, finally shaking off her stare with a flurry of blinks. “And with some guidance, you will do great things.”

“But how did you know?” Glynda jumped in, ignoring whatever slight inspiration the old man planned to give the girl.

“Your glance to each other,” she answered with a small grin. “When you looked at each other, you wanted to confirm something. It was when you two nodded that I was sure you both knew. You two were probably thinking something about how you already knew about everything I said.”

Taking in her answer, the two adults turned to each other again, neither moving to nod or shake his or her head. Nevertheless, Glynda still gestured for her superior to carry on.

“So what is your answer?”

“Um… I guess I’ll do it,” Ruby shrugged, making the chain of her cuffs rattle.

“You guess?” Glynda questioned, finally stepping forward to the table and looming over the short girl. “This is the most prestigious Huntsman academy in all of Remnant! Take this seriously!”

“Why should I?” Ruby asked in return. “Ozpin’s control leaks into every kingdom, so even if I don’t, he can still guide me to whatever he actually wants me for.”

Seeing Glynda reaching for her left wrist, the old man stood up and held his arm in front of her. “Please stay in a major city within a month, so our Bullheads can pick you up. We’ll welcome you with everyone else when you arrive.” Hearing the clicks of heels, he lowered his arm. “You may leave.”

Giving the two adults an awkward smile, Ruby raised her arms and rattled her cuffs. With a flick of her hand, the blonde witch shattered the cuffs, leaving a few scratches on the young girl’s wrist from the shards. Moving to leave, Ozpin was interrupted yet again.

“Can I have my scythe back? She’s really important.” Another flick of Glynda’s wrist and a hunk of metal flew into her tense fingers. Agitated, she threw it at the girl, who hugged the weapon upon contact. “Thanks!” She beamed, though neither adult paid her any mind.

After the two professors ambled down the hall, Ruby bolted away, finding her way out through memory of being dragged through the place. Eventually, she was outside and found herself outside of an aircraft hanger. Not paying it much attention, she turned to the road and began walking.

A few minutes later, her skin paled. In a flash, the small trace of color she had flooded back. Feeling a chill down her spine, she burst into a scarlet bullet and hurried along the road.


	2. Weiss Schnee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ready to head to Beacon academy, Ruby arrives in Atlas, but she meets a particular pompous elite along the way.

A blooming city rising above the clouds, all while tinted with an everlasting blue light. This was the upper echelon of Atlas, where power was decided by money and influence. Every person wore his or her best everywhere, no matter the occasion. Bringing a pompous air with each step, the citizens of Atlas were no more than walking wallets and lies.

Ruby absolutely despised it.

While her rugged boots touched the ground with soft thuds, she heard heels clicking all around her. Where she wore a cloak, others wore fancy coats crafted from the most expensive of materials, yet none the better for the cold. Even her face was far different than those of the rich and stubborn. She held soft features that were thinned and hardened by pure survival, meanwhile, the chiseled faces around her were sculpted by surgery or found through breeding—both of which the girl found revolting.

Thankfully, she was out of the bustling crowds after a few minutes of holding her tongue, leaving her near the edge of the floating capital. The only problem left: Atlas security.

“Halt,” a soldier ordered as she sauntered toward a gate. “Show me your identification.” 

Holding a rifle up, the soldier watched the young girl reached into the pouch strapped to her waist. From the pocket, she held up her scroll and replied, “Ruby Rose, here for transport to Beacon academy.”

Immediately, the armored trooper bent his knees and pointed his firearm at her head. With a small light appearing at the edge of his helmet visor, he declared, “All soldiers! Ruby Rose is on the premises! I repeat—”

“I’m here on Headmaster Ozpin’s orders. Interfere and both the headmaster and your general will be on your tail,” she warned in an uptight monotone voice that imposed the man to stay quiet. “If you need confirmation, contact either of them. The Bullhead is scheduled to leave in an hour, so we have time.”

She heard a series of grumbles from whoever was beneath the helmet, but when the helmet light flickered, she slipped her Scroll into a bag behind her. In a few minutes’ time, the soldier stepped aside, allowing her into the airport full of departing and arriving aircraft, many of which were full of soldiers and weapons. Ignoring the vehicles, the cloaked girl found her Bullhead waiting in the dead center of the field with a Huntsman standing outside holding a clipboard.

Sauntering over to the black-haired man, she noticed his eyes bulged when he saw her, though neither spoke of it. Stopping at foot of the door, she waited for him to say something.

“Ruby Rose, correct?” His voice was gruff and reeked of alcohol. She nodded nonetheless. “I’ll contact the old man and tell him you’re here. You can go wait until everyone’s here.” 

“How many people are on your list?” She asked, letting her curiosity get the better of her.

“Just two.”

Looking away, Ruby boarded the ship, finding herself in a small, militaristic space built to occupy a squadron of soldiers rather than passengers. Throwing her thoughts aside, she took found a seat across from the door. A straight line of escape with her semblance if something went wrong.

Now, as she sat alone, all that was left in her mind was who the other person was.

_ “Atlas academy students go straight into their military training programs, so no run-of-the-mill person could get someone out of that routine. Beacon rarely accepts students below par anyway, leaving the same crop of people I already picked out. Well, they probably have family connections to the general, which narrows it down a lot. But those rich people aren’t the best team players and Beacon really emphasizes teamwork.” _

Stopping her train of thoughts with a sigh, the cloaked girl remembered that even if she knew who had training—which she didn’t—she had no idea what Ozpin was looking for in a student. So, she just let the thoughts muddle together until she couldn’t pick up where she left off. Instead, she distracted herself by thinking about what upgrades she could make to her weapon.

Before she knew it, she bolted back to reality when the door slammed shut. Tugging on her hood to keep it on her head, she saw the black-haired huntsman go into the cockpit where another man was napping. With the man out of sight, Ruby turned to where her only companion was.

By only, she meant three.

Instead of just one other passenger, there were three more. Two were dressed in pressed suits and handling a dozen suitcases that a white-haired girl decided to bring with her.

_ “She brought butlers. Of course, she did. She’s a Schnee.” _

At the very least, the Schnee was across the room from her and quite far from the door. So, if something happened, then… well, it would be best if Ruby didn’t entertain all of her thoughts.

Keeping to herself, Ruby stood up and shuffled around the only traveling bag she had on her. Admittedly, it only held the bare essentials, though the girl would rather save money for Dust than spend it on another set of clothes. Sitting back down, she had her bag resting in her lap while her weapon was clipped to her back instead of her waist.

Reaching into the bag, the cloaked girl found her scroll buried between the folds of an outfit. Opening it up, she found the usual multitude of news articles that always appeared. Skimming through the list, she grew bored with the repetitive articles announcing that Pyrrha Nikos was going to Beacon.

_ “What is with famous people and being everywhere? Why would you even want that? Sure, attention’s nice once and a while, but wouldn’t everyone knowing who you are become a pain when you get predictable? Especially for that Nikos person. She’s a fighter, so knowing her style would be pretty easy. Although the fact she’s held her title for so long should just be a testament to her strength. To think she does all that with a spear-sword and a shield… I want to see her fight.” _

In the midst of her sporadic thoughts, Ruby did not notice the—painstakingly loud—clicking of heels as a girl dressed in white approached her. Though when someone has her head down, the Schnee shouldn’t have expected Ruby to be paying attention.

“Um, hello!” She shouted, causing Ruby to snap up and hurt her neck. “Finally,” she drawled, “do you even realize how rude you were being? Especially to me?”

“No…?”

“What!” She shrieked, hurting the cloaked girl’s ears. “I am Weiss Schnee! So don’t you ignore me, you heathen! You shouldn’t even be on this ship! Beacon is for the best of the best! Not some low-life like you!”

Putting her bag aside, Ruby stood up, finding herself quite a few inches shorter than the girl, though she just blamed it on the heels. But she was just that short. Nonetheless, she pulled her hood down, revealing her black hair and its red tips that framed her silver eyes which stared at the ice-blue of Weiss. “Do you know who I am, Heiress Schnee?” She asked creepily, causing a shiver to run up the taller girl’s spine.

Stepping back, Weiss crossed her arms and steeled her nerves. “Should I?”

“I suppose not,” Ruby said with a small smile dawning on her face. “But your sister knows and so does your mother, though last time I spoke with her, she was worse for wear.”

Taking a step closer, the white-haired girl shouted, “What does this have to do with my mother!?”

Looking up at the fuming heiress, Ruby felt her smile soften into an odd sense of joy seeing someone riled up. Although without a weapon in sight, she held onto the sense of happiness for what it was. “Your company. It has to do with your company. But you can talk to her about that; it’s not my business anyway.”

“And what is your business, you brat?” The other girl taunted, though a peeved tone persisted in her voice.

Pulling on a strap going diagonally across her torso, Ruby grabbed a red, grey, and black hunk of metal. “Anything really. As long as I get paid for it, I’ll do whatever is asked of me.”

“You’re a mercenary?” Weiss scoffed. “I highly doubt that.”

“Doubt what you will, Schnee,” Ruby replied in a simple, content voice as she eyed the scratches on her weapon. “But remember that Beacon is a place for  _ teams _ of Huntresses and Huntsmen. So, on the off chance that we get paired up, I hope there’s no bad feelings between us.” Flashing a smile to the white-clad girl, Ruby received another scoff in return.

“Just stay out of my way, whoever you are.”

“The name’s Ruby.”

“Right. Just stay out of my way, Ruby,” Weiss practically ordered before going back to her spot with her two butlers.

“Sure,” the silver-eyed girl muttered. With a sigh, she sat back down and rubbed one of Cresent Rose’s scratches.  _ “I probably shouldn’t have mentioned Willow. She’s probably a sensitive topic for her kids. Though Winter was probably enough for her to look into something… Now I have a bad feeling I’m actually going to get arrested. Oh well, hindsight is twenty-twenty.” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Weiss is here! She's a little pompous though...
> 
> Anyway, I tried to stay true to Weiss's personality pre-Team RWBY, which I thought was super pompous and sensitive (much like today's society). Meanwhile, Ruby transitions between creepy mercenary to a rambling buffoon who doesn't know when she's said too much. I hope you like my take so far!
> 
> Also... I kind of only planned out the plot development and not really character development. So if you have any ideas for scenes/chapters, please comment them.
> 
> Next time: Blake Belladonna!
> 
> If you want to talk, join my (dead) Discord! https://discord.gg/jjZDpgF


	3. Blake Belladonna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While helping a new friend, Ruby meets someone else: a Belladonna hiding in plain sight.

After an agonizingly long trip to Beacon, the Bullhead finally landed on the edge of the campus. Despite that, Ruby had to hold herself back from sprinting out of the passenger bay. Otherwise, she would likely run into the small mountain of luggage that Weiss had brought with her or into the black-haired Huntsman who kept stealing glances at her. The latter was something she kept in mind for later. For now, she was looking at all the weapons in the distance.

_ “So many weapons! Oh my gosh! Does that person have a gun-sword? What about that giant hammer?” _ She rambled in her head. Once she found herself looking at an unimpressive mace, she pulled back into reality.  _ “I suppose I should go to the entrance ceremony or whatever they’re doing.” _

Departing the aircraft, she waved to the Huntsman at the door before following a path to the central building. It was the biggest, so the cloaked girl guessed it might be an auditorium or something. Although she didn’t make it all the way. Instead, she paused when she heard an explosion. Using her semblance, she rushed straight toward it, leaving a trail of rose petals behind. Unknown to her, a blonde girl picked up one of these petals but it disintegrated in her fingers.

Next to one of the many fountains in the courtyard, Ruby stopped running. Just a few paces away, Weiss was berating a tall blonde boy while shoving a pamphlet in his face.

“Do you even realize how irresponsible you are?” She shrieked in his face. “This dust comes straight from the Schnee Dust Company mines! It is extremely sensitive and powerful! Hell, you could’ve blown me off the face of Beacon with your recklessness!”

“Wha… What about me?” The blonde whimpered on the ground.

“Who cares!” She scoffed as she grabbed an open case of glistening crystals. Moving toward the central building, her two butlers scrambled to chase after her with the rest of her luggage.

Walking over to the blonde boy, Ruby helped him back on his feet. Although she did notice how light he was—comparatively speaking of course. She barely reached his chest, but she had more muscle on her. Nonetheless, he looked happier than ever once she helped him onto his own two feet.

“Thanks,” he said,” by the way, the name’s Jaune Arc; short, sweet, rolls off the tongue, ladies love it.”

“I’m sure I can learn to love it,” Ruby awkwardly smiled.

After a brief moment of awkward silence of the two looking at each other, Jaune asked, “So, what’s your name? If you don’t mind, of course. My mom told me to always give my name first, so I thought you would—”

“It’s Ruby.”

“Oh, that’s a pretty name,” he said, shoving his hands into his pockets. “So… Want to go to the auditorium together?”

“No thanks, I have other plans,” she denied with whatever smile she could muster on her face. “I’ll see you around campus though, right?”

“Right!” He cheered before giving the girl an awkward wave. When Ruby waved back, he left for the central building.

_ “A sword and a shield. How boring…” _ Ruby thought, watching the tall blonde running in the distance. Reaching behind her, she grabbed onto her own weapon.  _ “I wonder if he knows about all the transforming weapons everyone else has.” _

Pausing her thoughts, the cloaked girl tugged on her hood, pulling it over to hide her hair. Glancing around, she stopped to stare at the scorched cement. At its center, there was an array of deep and shallow burns, mixed in with hints of ice; a clear hint of several different Dust mixing together. Moving around it, she crouched down and spotted a few sparkles of Dust leftover.

“Careful, Rose. There could still be enough to explode.”

Standing back up, Ruby found a black-haired girl wearing a bow standing before her. One glance down to her thigh told her everything she needed to know. “Belladonna, that’s a nice bow. Really screams, I’m trying to hide.”

“Dad was right. You can be one annoying girl,” she replied while slipping out a book from behind her. 

“Only when I want to be,” Ruby retorted with a cheeky smile directed to the taller girl. “Plus, it’s not like anyone can really hide when we always wear our emblem everywhere. Although I doubt that anyone would really know until you told them. Your family wasn’t really concerned about overseas matters, so you’d only be known domestically. Somewhat ingenious really. Hiding in plain sight is simple, but can fool a lot of people too.”

Holding a closed book in her hand, Belladonna just stared at Ruby, who started to keep her train of thought to herself. “He also mentioned your… overactive mind.”

Snapping back to reality, Ruby tilted her head. “Well, he’s not wrong.”

Opening her book, the taller girl turned away and began to walk while reading her book. Meanwhile, Ruby asked herself, “Do I really talk that much? Actually… she’s right. I should probably fix that before it gets me into trouble. And there I go again…”

* * *

In the auditorium, Ruby found herself among a group of strangers, though she was thankful there was no sign of Weiss or that Belladonna girl. Really, was she that bad? Leaving that question for another time, she looked around and spotted a mop of blonde hair. Rushing toward Jaune, she stopped near him but didn’t speak a word. Instead, she noticed his shaking leg tapping the ground with its heel and his glance around the room every few seconds.

“Jaune?” Immediately, his shaking stopped and he looked down. Upon seeing the cloaked girl, he looked around again. “Oh, right. The hood.” Taking down her hood, she ran a hand through her black locks, putting a few stray hairs down.

“Oh, hey, Ruby!” He said with a smile blooming onto his face. “What are you doing here?”

“I thought you could use a bit of company,” Ruby tugged on the hem of her cloak. “But do I look that different with my hood up? I don’t think that many people here are even wearing red,” she mused, taking a few glances around at the crowd they were in.

Avoiding eye contact, Jaune scratched ran a hand through his mop of hair. “Well, my mom always told me not to assume or it’ll make an ass out of you and me. So I was just being polite, you know?”

“Of course,” Ruby said with an amused smirk.

A pause began between the two. They just looked around the room, looking for something to talk about. Yet finding nothing, Ruby just turned to Jaune and looked over his clothes. Which certainly were… rustic, at least. There was nothing wrong with it! Ruby just thought it was out of its time, per se.

The blonde was wearing basic armor: a chest plate and two rerebraces. Both were white with grey trim, which was either giving into age or just a bad palette choice. Other than that, he seemed more comfortable than combat-suited. His jeans appeared flexible, yet casual. Meanwhile, he wore a black hoodie underneath his armor, which would not be suited to fighting Grimm unless he was going for a special aesthetic. Based on what Ruby had seen so far, he wasn’t.

“So, what’s with the armor? Seems a bit too little if you’re using a sword and shield,” Ruby commented, poking at the customized sheath clipped to Jaune’s jeans.

“Oh, they’re my grandpa’s old Huntsman gear. It’s not as cool as everyone else’s stuff, but he gave it to me himself,” he forced out a laugh while Ruby poked at his shield, causing it to pop out. “Wait, how did you know that was a shield?” He asked, realizing what she had pointed out prior.

“I’m a bit of a dork for all things weapons, so it doesn’t take me long to figure out what a weapon does,” she admitted as she tapped the shield, causing it to fold back up. “Plus, two random stripes on a sheath usually mean there’s a design and those folds on the side indicate moving parts. It’s obvious now, right?”

Grabbing his sheath, Jaune thumbed the ridges. “Huh? I guess it is.”

“So… what now?” Ruby asked, leaving Jaune’s weaponry alone. 

“Just pay attention.”

Whipping around, Ruby and Jaune found the Belladonna girl standing behind them, reading a book. Before they could question how she snuck behind them, the lights dimmed, cloaking everyone in darkness. Starting with the tapping of a microphone, the stage livened up. Standing front and center was Headmaster Ozpin gazing over the crowd, sending a shiver through the stiff room.

“I’ll… keep this brief,” he said, “You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step.”

_ “He’s telling us to just go for it. Information alone won’t tell us why or what to do. His speech is full of loopholes, but I think I have the gist of it.” _ The cloaked girl thought. 

Meanwhile, the greying man stepped off stage, allowing the blonde witch to take everyone’s attention. “You will gather in the ballroom tonight; tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed.”

“What do you think Ozpin was talking about?” Jaune asked when Professor Goodwitch left the stage. Turning toward Ruby and the Belladonna girl, he found both lost in thought. “Um… hello?”

“Hm? Oh, sorry! What was the question?” Ruby snapped back to reality and tugged on her cloak. Withholding a sigh, Jaune repeated his question. “Well, I don’t really know. Maybe he was just telling us to go for it, instead of just waiting. Yeah, that’s probably it.”

“Guess we’ll find out, right?” Ruby agreed and the Belladonna stayed silent. “I’ll see you later then.” Waving in another awkward moment, Jaune rushed off to follow the crowd of guys leaving the auditorium.

Finding a wave of girls flowing the other way, Ruby walked after them.

“Ruby, wait.” Spinning on her heel, the cloaked girl looked at the taller girl’s amber eyes. “We… I need to talk to you about something.”

“Sure, what is it?”

“Why are you here at Beacon?” She paused, seeing Ruby about to respond immediately. “And don’t just tell me whatever you told Ozpin. My father knows you’d never stay chained down, Oum knows he tried. So why?”

“Cause it would all end the same way. There are some really persistent and stubborn people here, you know?” Laughing at her own little joke, Ruby turned back around. “Come on! Let’s go get changed before all the good spots are taken!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This turned into mostly just a Jaune and Ruby bonding episode with Blake budging in every now and then, but that's alright with me. But, I do need some chapter suggestions/ideas, so plug them in the comments and I'll see what I can do!
> 
> Next time: Yang Xiao Long, the blonde brawler!
> 
> If you want to talk, join my (dead) Discord! https://discord.gg/jjZDpgF


	4. Yang Xiao Long, the Blonde Brawler!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a distant past catches up to Ruby, she grows unexpectedly closer to someone she barely knows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been like... two weeks since I updated, which is pretty slow for me. Blame two weeks full of tests and my mind dancing around emotions (seriously emotional scenes are SO hard for me). Anyway, my update schedule will be pretty sporadic, but I should get about three chapters per month. Should.
> 
> Well, time for a giant sleepover!

To no one’s surprise, the ballroom was bustling with activity, despite Professor Goodwitch’s words. Remaining on the outskirts of the loudmouthed groups of teenagers, Ruby sat against the wall. With a sketch pad in front of her, she flipped to an old page and ran over it in her head. Switching to a blank page, she drew out the same image she had just studied. Grabbing an eraser from her small bag, the handle of the sketched scythe was erased and redrawn with a bulkier end and a new grip.

Amidst her tunnel vision style of work, Blake set down a pillow and her bag next to Ruby. Before the taller girl sat down, she snatched one of the candles around the room. Now, she sat down with a book in her lap and a candle off to the side.

“A new design for your scythe?” Blake asked as Ruby jotted down a few notes beside the sketch. 

“Yeah, but it’ll be awhile before I have enough parts or the time to even implement it. I can still come up with new ideas though,” she answered before setting down her pencil. Taking a look around her, she became fixated on the group of girls huddled in a circle. “It seems like everyone else is just having fun when they should be getting some sleep.”

Opening up her book, Blake shuffled around to make sure her pages were in the candlelight. “Aren’t you being a hypocrite there?”

“Hey, this is productive work!” The shorter girl mock-whined, “Just because I enjoy it doesn’t mean I’m wasting my time. Plus, I’ve done harder things than kill Grimm on a few hours of sleep, so it won’t be a problem. Unless, of course, Ozpin decides to up the challenge by looking the other way when something dangerous or against the rules happens.”

“Has that happened before?”

“Of course. He’s far from perfect, after all.” Deciding not to elaborate on that, Ruby took up her eraser again and took out the new grip. Adding a note to the new sketch, she began the meticulous process of designing the mechanisms inside the handle. Truth be told, she didn’t think she’d even finish it if she stayed up all night.

Meanwhile, Blake chose to read her book with only a glance toward Ruby’s progress when she turned a page. The drawings she saw were detailed to the fullest, even accounting for a few dents or scratches in the scythe, none of which the Belladonna was sure were actually a part of the weapon. Although, the notes she read over accounted for structural weaknesses, imbalance in the handling, and even costs.

Shaking her head minutely, the taller girl shifted herself to keep the sketchbook out of sight. Despite that, anyone passing by could hear Ruby’s pencil running across the page. So, being right next to her, Blake kept thinking back to the intricate drawing.

“Ruby, could you quiet down? Everyone can hear you,” she complained, hiding her annoyed scowl behind a book.

In the midst of writing a positives and negatives chart, Ruby replied, “Let me just finish writing down these thoughts. Then, I’ll shut up and let you read.” After rushing through a few oddly neat lines. Blowing off a few eraser bits from the page, she shut the pad and slipped it into her bag. “So, what’s your book about?”

“A girl who must choose between two evils,” Blake said, shifting into a more comfortable position against the wall.

“Sounds too philosophical,” Ruby said while rummaging through her bag to grab her Scroll and a pair of headphones. “But you do you, I guess.”

With a short sound of agreement, Blake settled back into reading. Meanwhile, Ruby took a few glances around the ballroom before slipping her headphones over her ear. Although when she started up one of her playlists, she made sure to lower the volume to the point where she could faintly hear the small pillow fight a group of girls was having. Laying with her back against the wall and her belongings sandwiched between her legs and the wall, she closed her eyes.

Despite that, only a few minutes went by before the small girl cracked open her silver orbs. Sitting up, she spotted a bright yellow blur growing bigger. A few blinks later and she could see the mane of blonde hair trailing a girl much taller than herself. Just a few paces in front of her, the blonde stopped.

“Name’s Yang, who’re you two?” She asked, extending her hand. Although if Ruby wanted to shake her hand, she would have to make an awkward showing of getting up to reach. So, instead, she pulled down her headphones and paused her music to buy herself some time.

“I’m Blake and this is Ruby.” Not looking up from her book, the black-robed girl didn’t even acknowledge Yang’s hand.

Hearing the second name, the blonde slowly retracted her hand and turned to the smaller girl. The sweatpants and an oversized shirt looked comfortable on Ruby’s miniature frame. That was when amethyst met silver. In a rush, Yang dropped down and wrapped the girl in her arms, disregarding the person reading to her left.

“Please… tell me it’s really you,” Yang softly choked out over Ruby’s shoulder.

Patting the blonde on the back, the black-haired girl said, “It’s me, sis. I’m really here… but could you let go? My ribs feel like they’re bending and Oum knows that my Aura won’t be able to fix that.”

“Just a few more seconds.”

After a few more seconds, the blonde ended the hug but still held onto Ruby’s arms as if the younger girl would slip away if she was let go. Staring at each other, both could hear the giggling and whispers of a group of girls that were huddled together. Ignoring them, Ruby slipped her hand out of Yang’s grip to pull her headphones off her neck. “So, why are you at Beacon?” The younger girl said, breaking the awkward stillness between the two.

“To become a Huntress, why else?” She answered, only for her sister to give her a blank stare. “Oh, right. I wanna become a Huntress since it’s really what I’m best at. Plus, with both Dad and Uncle Qrow being Huntsmen, it was kind of an obvious pick. Wait! I have to tell Dad and Uncle Qrow you’re here! Oh my gosh! They’ll be so glad—”

Holding a hand over the blonde’s mouth, Ruby shook her head. “The headmaster knows I’m here, so they already know. Uncle Qrow is basically Ozpin’s personal Huntsman, so he would’ve been told when he got back from whatever mission he was on. Dad’s just a phone call away too, so even if the headmaster didn’t tell him directly, Qrow would’ve told him.” Taking her hand off of her sister’s mouth, she added, “Plus, if you don’t pass the entrance exam, you don’t get to stay. Don’t get your hopes up, Yang.”

“But you’ve trained, right? You wouldn’t be here if you didn’t train to become a Huntress! I mean, you’ve always wanted to be one, so even if you were gone, you could’ve trained with a sword or something!” Yang panicked, letting all of her thoughts out when something else came to her mind.

Letting out a sigh, the younger girl was tempted to reach behind her to spin around her scythe. Unfortunately, she remembered that Professor Goodwitch practically forced her to leave it behind in one of Beacon’s lockers. Why did her semblance have to be telekinesis of all things?

“Course I trained, but… not to be a Huntress.”

“What?” Yang said immediately, but she didn’t even give Ruby the chance to clarify her statement before she started her own tirade. “But you’ve always wanted to become a Huntress! You’re even at Beacon already! You can’t just say you don’t want to be one!”

“Yang!” Silenced by the outburst, the blonde settled down begrudgingly. “I’m only here at Beacon because the headmaster would track me down and force me somewhere he can control even if I refused. Get that straight and don’t expect me to just go out of my way to help random people or even save them, okay?”

The message sank in after a handful of seconds. Yang nodded only to keep whatever composure she had maintained.

“Good,” Ruby said, “Now, mind telling me why you came over here in the first place?”

“Oh, I forgot about that,” Yang said with her joyous energy trickling back. “My friends over there dared me to, but I guess they moved onto something else. Eh, won’t really matter.” She waved her hand, dismissing the thought of going back to the large group of girls. “But, any plans for tomorrow? We got that entrance exam, right?”

Nodding, Ruby glanced over to her bag and turned back to her older sister. “It’s to form teams, so I’ll probably stay up high and avoid the main group of people, so I don’t get stuck with some random person. But knowing how the headmaster works, he’ll probably set up some random, dangerous objective. So the mission is my goal and nothing else.”

“Huh? What do you mean teams?” Yang asked, hanging onto that point.

Rolling her eyes with a slight smile subconsciously creeping up on her face, Ruby answered, “Remember Team STRQ? Dad’s team was formed because of the entrance exam. But hearing him talk about how he met Mom for weeks should’ve ingrained that into your memory. I mean, even I remember that.”

“Right… Well, who do you think you’ll partner with then?” Yang asked, feeling a cold shiver trail down her spine. “Personally, I might just look for Morgan or Selena. They can keep up with me, so it might just be fun for us.”

Pondering the thought of who should be her partner, Ruby glanced around the room. The first person she recognized was Weiss, who was rustling in a fluffy sleeping bag. Then there was Jaune… who was wearing footed pajamas. Let it be said that Ruby didn’t even consider him before she saw his outfit. All that was left was Yang and Blake.

“I guess I could partner up with Blake. I’m sure we could do some great stealth missions, even if we don’t have a bunch of raw power.” In her peripheral, the young girl could see the mentioned girl perk up from her book, if only just for a few seconds. “But really, I prefer going solo. My fighting style doesn’t really accommodate fighting with someone else.”

“Really? What do you use then?”

“Um… You’ll see it tomorrow,” Ruby said, pulling her bag close. “Speaking of which, we should get some rest for the test. Your friends probably miss you anyway.” Pointing over to the huddle of girls, none of them were even looking their way.

Getting up, Yang nodded with a sullen smile. “Well, I’m glad you’re back, Ruby. Maybe we’ll even be on the same team tomorrow,” she said cheerfully with a brighter smile blossoming at the thought.

_ “Oh, please don’t jinx it,” _ Ruby thought as her elder sister retreated to her group of friends. Brushing off the thought, she pushed herself back up against the wall, where her black-robed companion remained reading.

The two remained quiet, neither making a move to spark up a conversation. Blake flipped another page and Ruby curled up against the wall with her bag held against her chest. Without something simple to distract herself, the younger girl looked around. On the girl’s unofficial side, many were chatting in small circles and a few were sleeping alone despite the hour. On the boy’s unofficial side, they were having an oddly violent pillow fight, complete with forts.

“Ruby, did you honestly consider us being partners?” Blake asked, lowering her book.

“A bit, yeah. To be honest, I think we could make a solid team together, especially with your  _ talents _ . Although two glass cannons are a bit of a bad pair, we have all the mobility we need to escape anyone. Course, since I don’t know what your semblance is, there’s no telling what else we could do. But, you know, it was only a passing thought. You don’t have to take it too seriously, especially since there are dozens of people that you could be paired up with.”

“That’s a nice thought,” the older girl commented, breaking up whatever train of thought that Ruby was forming. Closing her book, Blake grabbed the stand of her candle. “Let’s get some sleep.”


	5. The Entrance Exam Begins

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let the games begin! Ruby and co. are ready for their first test! But first, Glynda wants a talk.

“Miss Rose, may I have a word with you?”

Turning around, Ruby found Professor Goodwitch standing a few paces behind her. Glancing around at the near-empty locker room, the young girl nodded before grabbing her usual cloak—the red, somewhat stained, and a wavy flare for the hem. Snapping it around her neck with the usual rose emblem, she made her way over to the older woman.

“So, what did you need, Professor?” Ruby asked, looking up at the stern woman.

Spinning on her heel, the blonde said, “Follow me,” before making her way out of the room. With a young teenager following her at the heels, Glynda left the building and began a short trek to the cliffside that overlooked the Emerald Forest. Stopping at the edge, she posed the question, “Do you know why you are here, Miss Rose?”

“I’m going to be taking my test here, right?” She asked with a smile plastered on her face, unwavering at the sight of the no-nonsense woman.

“Yes, but there is much more,” she replied, turning around to look down at the girl, both literally and figuratively.

The two remained silent after that comment. Glynda stood her ground and only made the move to direct her riding crop at the small girl. Ruby kept her smile up with her silver eyes staring back into the green orbs of her superior. She had her scythe, and by all means, would at least try to hack the woman that was threatening her—no matter how hidden it was. Though a secluded location and a weapon drawn could only lead to a small number of endings. Yet she left her scythe strapped to her back, waiting to be drawn.

“All I know is that the headmaster deems my eyes a useful asset for his feud. Beyond that, I don’t have a single clue. Care to make this my first lesson, professor?” Ruby asked cheekily, silently enjoying the small strain the woman made of not scowling at her.

Keeping her riding crop aimed at her target, Glynda said, “You are not far from the truth, but if you want his reasons, you will have to go to the man directly. However, I believe I need to remind you that you will be part of a team and have your own partner, decided by who you make eye contact within the forest first. That means you will _cooperate_ , Miss Rose. If you refuse, you will be forced into Atlas Academy, where you have many _friends_ that would _love_ to see you again. Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal,” Ruby said, still staring with a smile that Glynda internally begged to wipe off her face.

“Then I have one last thing for you.” Undoing a clasp around her neck, the blonde tossed a necklace over to Ruby, who caught it with ease. Observing the accessory, the girl had a simple silver cross that was linked to a short chain. “It was a gift from your uncle. He hoped it made up for a few of the birthdays he missed.”

“Why didn’t you just leave this in my locker or something?”

“That idiot thought something unlucky would happen to it, so he asked me for a small favor,” the older woman answered, clearly unamused by the situation.

Clasping the necklace around her neck, Ruby grabbed her goggles and strapped them over her forehead. “Thanks, professor,” she said, playing with the necklace for a few seconds before leaving it hanging in front of her skin-tight top.

“Just get going, Miss Rose. But if you must thank me, do it by cooperating.”

“No problem!” Jogging back to the locker rooms, where Ruby expected the other potential students to be trickling in, she left the professor on the cliffside. Watching the girl leave, the blonde turned back to look over to the forest. Below her, packs of Grimm scoured the land, ravaging it as they pleased. All of a sudden, a screech roared throughout the forest, luring Glynda’s eyes over to an overgrown bird that soared across the land.

“Some cathartic hunting sounds nice right about now.”

* * *

It was only an hour since her chat with Glynda, but Ruby was on edge. It may have been a number of things that made her feel that way. There was the sheer amount of people around her, the foreign accessory hanging around her neck, or just the fact that she would be working in a team of four with absolute strangers. She wanted to say it was the last thing, but she had dealt with teammates before, so it should’ve been something else. Although those partners were open to letting her know how much they hated or pitied her.

Nonetheless, the young girl was sitting in front of her locker, just absentmindedly tugging at the wavy edge of her cloak. It was this position that Jaune found her and sat next to her. When she didn’t notice him, he had no clue what to do. He could say something, maybe nudge her, but touching a girl and talking to her are completely different things, especially one that wasn’t his sister. Well, he could still try.

“Ruby, you… uh, alright?” He asked with a slight stutter that he only made more obvious by his pause.

Snapping out of her thoughts, the young girl looked at the older blonde to her left. “Hey, Jaune,” she greeted as she let go of her cloak, “I’m alright. There’s just something on my mind, is all.”

“Wanna share? I’ve been told talking it out helps,” Jaune said with a bright smile.

His smile would be the kind Ruby would laugh at, but stopped herself from doing so. For one, it was a silly kind of expression, one that looked like he was blatantly trying to cheer her up. On another note, she could barely take him seriously when he closed his eyes and smiled. It just seemed to radiate the “I don’t talk to girls, but I’m trying” message.

“I think it’s the team thing that’s giving me the jitters, you know?” She asked, curling her lips into a smile, albeit a small, forced one.

“Wait, teams? What do you mean teams?” He asked frantically, only to see Ruby cover her mouth to stifle her giggles. To be fair, he looked incredibly dumb.

“We’re at Beacon, Jaune,” she teased, seeing even more confusion spread across his face, “If you aren’t part of a team, you aren’t a student. So if every student needs to be part of a team, then what easier way to make them pair up than give them a test. I mean, anyone here could probably fend off a pack of Beowolves if they needed to, but there’s probably a bunch more critters to fight. But, you know—Jaune, you okay? You’re looking a bit pale.”

Jumping up from the bench, he waved his hands as he felt warmth rush back into his face. “I’m fine! Totally fine! It must’ve been your imagination! Maybe you should rest a bit, your anxiety might make you see things.”

Looking at him with a deadpan expression, Ruby blinked silently until he deflated. When he did, she stood up and grabbed his upper arm. She would have grabbed his shoulder, but she wasn’t sure she could reach. “You’ll be fine. We just have to loosen up a bit.”

“How would we do that?”

“We could go look for someone to be part of Team Jaune! I bet that’d help!” She said cheerfully, _“I can scout out the students, weapons, and think about something else for once! Score!”_

“I guess we could do that…”

Without any warning, Ruby grabbed his hand and dragged him into another aisle, finding most of the people she knew. Blake was nowhere to be found, but that was fine. The cloaked girl remembered the short conversation last night, and by any chance, the ribbon girl did too. So, she turned toward Weiss, who was talking to a redhead much taller than her.

It took a few seconds, but the black-haired girl realized who was standing a few paces away from her.

“Pyrrha!”

Whipping around, the roman warrior greeted an excited bundle of energy that jumped into her arms, despite the armor. Unfortunately, it seemed one very distraught heiress took offense to this public display of affection.

“What are you doing! Get off of her, you heathen! Do you have any idea how disrespectful you’re being right now!” Each shriek appeared nothing like the question each was supposed to be. Nevertheless, the two ignored the white-haired priss for the moment. Meanwhile, Jaune awkwardly shuffled around the scene and next to the heiress, who took no notice of him.

A few seconds later, Ruby dropped from the redhead’s grasp and bounced on the balls of her feet. “Pyrrha, I never imagined seeing you around Beacon. Never thought you’d come here if you wanted to be a Huntress anyway.”

“I did not suspect you to be here either, Ruby. You have always liked the mercenary life, have you not?” Pyrrha asked, eyeing the girl up and down.

“Course I have and still do! But we can talk about that later, right now, I have someone for you to meet.” Grabbing Jaune by the arm, she gestured to him with a close-lipped smile. “This is Jaune Arc, he’s looking for some teammates since he’s a bit nervous about the whole test.”

“Oh, what a coincidence. This girl here was just speaking of teams,” the redhead replied, pointing to the white-haired girl that had been ignored the whole time. “But, my apologies, I should have introduced myself first. I am Pyrrha Nikos, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Jaune.”

“Nice to meet you too, Pyrrha,” he stammered back, quickly realizing that he was in the middle of three girls. Though he knew Ruby, he was still nervous around the beautiful redhead and wary of the white-haired heiress.

Glancing over to Weiss, Ruby made no move, but the same could not be said for the other girl. “What are you two doing! I was talking to Pyrrha! You have no right to talk to her so casually, you dolts!” She screeched, though it seemed that only Jaune had reacted to it. 

Turning to face her previous companion, Pyrrha shook her head. “Ah, forgive me. This is my old friend, Ruby Rose.”

“Been a short while, Princess. Didn’t think I’d see you so soon,” Ruby added, mock saluting the girl.

“It’s heiress!” She screeched once more, reaching an even higher octave than before. 

Feeling a bead of sweat forming above his brow, Jaune cut in. “We’re we talking about teams?” He took a step closer to Ruby, the only person he marginally knew. “We’re supposed to take that exam in a few minutes anyway, so we could all be a team.”

“No thanks.”

“Not on your life!”

Blinking at that simultaneous exchange between Ruby and Weiss respectively, Pyrrha turned around to grab her spear from one of the lockers. “Well, we can wait to make a decision. After all, no plan is… how do you say… foolproof.”

“I can work with that.”

“Well, if _Pyrrha_ suggests it, then I _suppose_ I can do that.”

Again, Jaune blinked at the odd pair of girls. After spending most of his life with his sisters, he knew a feud when he saw one and this was a perfect example. Knowing that piece of information, he didn’t say a word. It would pass with some time. He hoped.

Well, he hoped he wasn’t on a team with both of them. But he knew better than to attempt fate. Or did he?

_“Students, make your way to the cliff overlooking Emerald Forest. If you need a reference, head east until you are about to fall. Be there in five minutes or you will fail the exam without exception.”_

Heeding the stern voice of Professor Goodwitch, the students each headed out with varying levels of excitement. Such as Ruby who bounded out of the locker rooms despite having been the gloomiest person just a few minutes ago. Then there was Weiss who was incessantly asking Pyrrha to be on her team. Jaune had absolutely no clue how other people could change their mood so fast. 

_“I should’ve stayed home,”_ he internally cried before trudging after his peers.

* * *

“For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be tested in the Emerald Forest,” Ozpin announced, holding his mug and cane while gazing over the group of students gathered before him.

“I’m sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams,” Glynda internally grimaced, seeing the all-too-confident smirk of multiple students. She particularly was annoyed by the ginger yelling at a black-haired boy next to her. “Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… **today**.”

At that, only a handful of students were shocked. Although the confirmation for a certain blonde definitely made him shake with anticipation and fear.

“These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well.” The smiles sent between students were a welcomed sight for the aged headmaster compared to Glynda who was already making mental notes. Still, there was someone who put him on edge. Ruby had yet to look at anyone, instead, she had slid her goggles down over her eyes. To be fair, the four pairs of eyes looking to her were settling to his nerves. “That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years.”

“Wait, landing?”

“Just get ready to grab something, Jaune.”

“After you’ve partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path… or you **will** die.”

“What…”

“Just wave your sword, yell, and wait for someone to help, Jaune.”

“You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?”

“Yeah, um, sir?”

“Yes, Mister Arc?” Ozpin hummed, taking an odd satisfaction from seeing the fear in the boy’s eyes compared to the intensity of silver orbs beside him.

“How exactly are we getting down there?” Pointing down to the forest and the ravine, the blonde didn’t notice that the cloaked girl kneeled down.

Smirking to herself, Glynda pulled out her tablet and tapped it. Immediately, Ruby was thrown by a springboard away from the cliff. To everyone’s amazement, instead of yelling at the sudden vault, she twisted herself and rocketed straight forward in the shape of a crimson bullet. When the crimson shell evaporated, Ruby’s momentum carried herself forward as she began falling, but before she was a splat in the forest, she pulled out her scythe and hooked herself around a tree, slowing her down while making an aesthetically pleasing carving.

“Does that answer your question, Mister Arc?” Glynda piped in, her smirk held on her face and a hand hovering over dozens of pictures on her tablet.

Staring at the faraway sight, Jaune blinked once. He only identified his only friend by the cloak she wore, and even then, she looked like an ant. “You expect us to do something like that?” He whimpered, contrasting the excitement broadcasted from another blonde a few platforms down the line.

“At least something similar,” the professor replied, eyeing the lanky boy with an air of amusement, “I can give you a handicap at the expense of your grade if you are dearly in need of assistance. Would that help?”

“Um, yes please.”

Swiping at her tablet, the blonde teacher hovered over a few buttons before pressing the one at the bottom. Replacing the buttons, the picture of a mask popped up on the screen.

_“Professor, you seriously made this necklace a phone?”_

“Save the questions for class, Miss Rose,” Glynda said, turning to look at the red dot off in the distance. “But if you would like some free points, I have a proposal for you.”

_“Change it to a small favor and we have a deal.”_

“One small favor it is then.” With a smirk, the blonde woman turned back to the nervous wreck of a potential student. “Miss Rose, in about five minutes, find your partner, then catch one Jaune Arc. Are we clear?”

_“Crystal. Mind sending a few people my way then?”_

“As a matter of fact, I do mind. I already offered free points to you, so don’t expect me to make it any easier. That will be all.” Flicking back to the panel of pictured buttons, the woman smirked at Jaune, who only whimpered again. “Now, for the rest of you, I will launch you at random until only Mister Arc is left.”

Without any other words, she pressed a button, launching a ginger girl with a hammer. Gulping Jaune could only hope that Ruby actually helped him. Sure, he trusted her more than anyone else here, but he wouldn’t trust her with his life, yet. Maybe one day, but he’s only known her for a day. She always pulled on a smile when they hung out, so maybe she’d be happy to help him. Although with every lingering doubt, he was shaking and doubting his chances more. So, he switched to happy thoughts like…

Having Ruby for a partner? He knew she did that fall with ease, so she had to be skilled, right? Plus, they already got along, so he didn’t have to worry about making a new friend with someone.

“Don’t worry, Jaune! I’ll go find Rubes and we’ll catch you!” Turning to his left, Jaune saw a buxom blonde wearing aviators giving him a thumbs up. Right when he was going to thank her, she was launched off. Was Glynda working against him?

“Mister Arc, mind you, the drop is over one hundred feet, so you may want to prepare your own landing strategy. It’s just a suggestion though.”

She was. She definitely was working against him. Like Jaune didn’t have enough to worry about. It’s not like he did anything bad to her. “Ruby, please help me!” He internally screamed, looking out over the forest.

* * *

Meanwhile, one cloaked mercenary had found her way up into a tree and jumped from branch to branch with practiced ease. The tree branches bent back further than she expected sometimes, but it gave her a boost in momentum without even using her semblance, so it was a welcomed surprise.

All of a sudden, a screech sounded from above.

Looking up, Ruby spotted a raven-shaped creature soaring over her; that was not a welcome surprise. Nonetheless, she landed on a wider branch and spun her scythe around. In one fluid motion, the blade had compacted together before a scope had popped out of the side. Aiming the smaller weapon upward, she pulled the trigger, sending a bullet swirling into the beast’s wing and making a feather fall off.

Enraged by having a feather clipped off, the Grimm hovered for a moment, allowing its hunter to shoot off another feather from the same wing. Releasing another screech in its attacker’s direction, the creature suddenly turned to face another part of the forest. Flying off in that direction, it had left Ruby disappointed and making her excitement fade away.

“How could I forget? Grimm are attracted to negative emotions,” she said sarcastically, “and there are over thirty teenagers here. Guess I’ll keep looking for a partner.”

“Ruby!”

Said girl froze. She recognized that voice. “Speak of the devil and he shall come,” she muttered before turning around to see...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you go, folks, after three days—Wait! Three days! I'm never this productive! Well, anyway, I was on a kicker and pumped this out with the Pyrrha and Ruby relationship coming in as a surprise for myself.
> 
> But there's something more important! I want you to decide who Ruby's partner will be with a solid reason! (Mind you, this decision will influence who she spends the most time with, but your choices are limited to those listed below.)
> 
> Will it be Weiss, the stuck-up, canon, and my usual ship? Blake, the perverted bookworm with some sort of past with Ruby? Or Yang, the older sister whose dynamic has yet to be decided? Personally, I'mma little inclined to Miss Kitty.


	6. Is it a Bird? No! It's Jaune!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fair warning: the pacing of this chapter may be worse than usual given that I rushed this on a new computer. Nonetheless, I hope you enjoy it!

“Speak of the devil and he shall come,” Ruby muttered as she turned around.

Leaping across tree branches, a black blur approached the cloaked girl. Well, the person was a blur to everyone else who was in the area, which was limited to two others. As for Ruby, she could make out specific colors, though her advantage ended there, even with her goggles. Fortunately for the young mercenary, she knew who was coming.

Landing on the same branch that the cloaked girl had perched herself on, the blur halted its rush. Brushing back a lock of her ashen hair, Blake found her footing on the bark, though her heeled boots made that easier said than done.

Making eye contact with the taller girl, Ruby rested her firearm against her shoulder, feeling its familiar weight pile down on her small frame. “Guess we’re partners, Blake,” she said with a closed-lip smile, “Anyway, ignoring our _talk_ from last night, let’s go grab us a blonde baby.”

“Right,” Blake replied with a quick nod. When the silver-eyed maiden turned, she allowed her lips to give a hint to a smile. Before it could blossom into a full smile, her partner bounded off while holding a large sniper in her arms. “Dad said she was odd but reliable. I guess I’ll have to see for myself,” she muttered. Saving her thoughts for later, she crouched and leaped after her new partner.

Crossing the treeline, the pair stopped short of a straight clearing. Eyeing the unnatural path, the shorter and more initiative of the two noticed a few partners charging down north of the clearing, heading over to a mossy shrine filled with pedestals. Glancing back at her own partner, she flashed another closed-lip smile. Then, she grasped the necklace hanging over her chest, searching for any indents in the cross charm. Finding none, she moved to her second plan, which involved using her sniper’s scope to take a peek at who was left at the cliff.

Once she had taken a headcount, she directed her attention to her partner. “I know it’s going fast, but let me take charge right now, okay?” Ruby asked, still holding her weapon as if she was aiming at the cliff.

Nevertheless, Blake shrugged it off and gripped on her own weapon. “That’ll depend. What do you want me to do?” She retorted cooly, keeping face around the young mercenary.

“Mind going over to those ruin-looking things?” She asked, pointing to the group of pedestals northward of their position. “There should be something to collect over there to sort out teams. Grab one of them and wait for me. Watch out for other teams though. Whatever’s there will come in pairs, so we’ll probably end up with whoever has the matching pair.”

 _“She knows all this from her parents’ stories?”_ The Belladonna questioned within the depths of her mind. Letting the passing thought fade away, she asked, “What will you do?”

“I told you, I got a blonde baby to catch,” she answered with a hint of a smirk flickering on her lips, “Who else is going to babysit him?” She added with a mouthful of sarcasm. Folding up her weapon, she stood filled with confidence and ordered, “Get going, Blake. Time waits for no one.”

Bouncing up to a higher landing, the cloaked girl slipped her sniper across her back, leaving the ashen-haired young woman on the other perch. Withholding a sigh, Blake dropped down from the tree and charged toward the ruins. Well, that was what she had planned to do.

Once she was on the ground, she leaped out of the way of a rampaging Ursa, which was followed by a young man garbed in green. Following him for a few paces, she only noticed a minute later that the bear monster had a ginger girl riding on top of it. Holding her awe back, a stupor came over her when the ginger whined at the dissipating Grimm. Snapping the young woman out of it, a giant scorpion broke through the tree line with a redhead stabbing it at the base of its tail.

 _“What is with these people?”_ The ashen-haired girl briefly thought. Before any more unnatural occurrences could become possible, a piercing, high-pitched scream rained from above. Twisting to look for it, all she could see was a blur of white barreling through the sky. _“That must be the Jaune boy. How will Ruby help him?_ ”

On cue, a bullet of crimson shot out, and by Blake’s guess, either horribly off course or aimed at some odd trajectory. Yet, it swirled away and revealed Ruby flying upward, albeit at a much slower speed. Unfortunately, her target was still a few meters off from even gracing her, so the cloaked girl spun around again and made a beeline to the boy. Swirling out of her semblance, her partner snatched Jaune’s arm, immediately bringing opposing momentums together to spin in a dizzying heap.

Disregarding her previous objective, she grabbed her sheathed weapon and whipped a tree branch with her weapon. Using it to swing, she flung herself toward her partner, breaking the tops of the trees in mere seconds. Then, she felt gravity work against her, arching her back down and out of the way of the flying heap of limbs. Hooking onto a tree, Blake was about to make another dash for Ruby but stopped short.

Calm and reserved, fearless of the dangers, that was what Ruby appeared to be. Even with the big blonde baby holding onto her for dear life, she effortlessly whipped out her scythe and snagged the blade into the bole of the nearest tree. In the abrupt stop, the small girl’s grip only tightened on her weapon and her charge while her expression turned serious, showing a hint of strain.

Hanging from the handle of her scythe, she looked directly at Blake. “I thought I told you to go to the ruins!” She shouted, her voice bleeding annoyance though it was unclear whether it was on her face from the way her hair was tousled over.

Realizing that her mouth had been open throughout the entire stunt, the ashen trainee bounded over to the nearest tree branch to her partner. “I was over there, but you looked like you needed help,” she said with her eyes only on her partner and not the blonde desperately holding onto the said partner.

“I told you to let me take charge,” she retorted. Without any warning, she tossed the helpless trainee over to Blake, who barely managed to grab him and stay on the branch. “You should know better than everyone here that I can take care of stuff like this. Help’s nice and all, but I’ll ask for it if I actually need it.” Swinging herself, Ruby landed onto a branch sans weapon. Taking a running start, she jumped toward her scythe and dislodged it from the tree with her weight, only to land on a much lower branch and seeing a flash of her Aura around her feet.

“What the hell happened, Ruby? You weren’t this stuck-up ten minutes ago!” Blake called out, confusing the young man at her side. Staring at the silver-eyed girl, she met the amber eyes of her partner.

After taking a deep breath, the shorter girl looked ashamed. “Sorry! It’s an old habit of mine! I’ll try to keep it in check!” She shouted out to the higher branch, “Let’s go get to those pedestals before it’s too late!”

In a rush of pure speed, the cloaked girl bounded down to the forest floor with her partner on her tail, though her load slowed her down considerably. Once she was on the ground, Blake let go of Jaune in favor of following Ruby. Of course, he still tried to chase after them despite the near-supernatural speeds the two maintained.

Reaching a mossy ruined piece of architecture, the new duo stopped at the closest pedestal. Taking a glance at each other, the shorter of the two gestured forward, so Blake snatched a black queen chess piece since it was right in front of her. Holding onto it, the two turned back to see their charge huffing and puffing over to them. Keeping their giggles stifled, Jaune was none the wiser when he saw the two girls smirking at him.

“Uh… what now?” Jaune huffed out as he squatted down to catch his breath.

This time, the taller of the duo gestured forward, so Ruby took the charge. “You should wait for someone to be your partner. Other than that, stay out of Pyrrha’s way or you’ll get an unhealthy dose of poison.” Seeing the boy’s face pale at her casual death warning, the cloaked girl felt her lips tug into a wider smirk.

“Shouldn’t we help her?” Blake asked, her arms crossed under her chest.

“Why are you asking me?” The silver-eyed teen asked in return.

“You said you wanted to take charge, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, but that was just to save some time. Plus, it’s just a full-grown Death Stalker, so even with its armor, Pyrrha should be able to take it down easily.”

“You really are something else,” Blake shook her head with a smile persisting on her lips, “Are you sure she can handle it? She’s a tournament fighter, not a Huntress, so even with book smarts, defeating any kind of Death Stalker will be a nightmare.”

“Don’t you worry,” Ruby happily shrugged before pointing past the redhead, “Yang and Weiss are coming, they’ll help her out. But what was that part about me?”

Watching the approaching pair of girls, Blake could see a restrained temper behind Weiss and a beaming smile from Yang. “We can talk about it later.”

“No, we’re talking about this right now!” Ruby stomped her foot down, causing the taller girl to giggle while Jaune kept looking on with confusion.

“Well, she isn’t as mature as I thought,” Blake ceased her giggling, though wiping away her amused smile was another story. “Do you really think everyone is as strong as you?”

“Well… I mean… I’ve always been around strong people and fought plenty of things, so it’s easy to tell that everyone’s not at that level. But I guess my expectations are a little high,” she sheepishly admitted, ignoring a dumbfounded Jaune that kept muttering something about strength.

Shaking her head with her eyes closed, Blake only kept an ear out for the fight taking place around them. “A little high?” She repeated with sarcasm encasing her tone.

“Fine, they’re too high,” she smiled as her gaze turned upon a giant scorpion being uppercut by a blonde brawler while its tail was being cut off. Sniping a smirk over to her partner, she added, “But they’re still reachable.”

Adding no further comment, Blake strode up to the trio of fighters standing around the dissipating corpse of the Death Stalker. Bouncing after her, Ruby’s boots displaced patches of grass, leaving shallow imprints of her path. Meanwhile, Jaune just stared at the girls with one thought on his mind, _“I’m so out of my league here.”_

Joining into a group of five, Ruby already found herself distanced from Weiss, though it seemed everyone else was too. Finding some solace in that fact, she led the three over to the ruins, where Jaune and a few more chess pieces were waiting.

* * *

Back over at the cliff, two people loomed over the Emerald Forest. One sipped from a mug, unphased by the danger he put a bunch of kids in by his developed apathy. The other tapped away on a tablet, holding in a sharp breath as she saw partners group up and separate from others. Nevertheless, she held strong and held onto the shred of hope she had for some of her biased picks from the litter of students.

“Glynda, has everyone been paired up?” The greying man asked, holding his mug at waist-level.

“In a way, yes,” she said turning her gaze over to the farthest group in the forest, “Mister Arc and Miss Nikos have yet to properly settle their partners, but since they’ve met each other, they will have to be each other’s partner. Although I have even more doubts about that boy’s so-called potential.”

“Save it for later, he’ll be a wonderful Huntsman, if not a leader,” he dismissed with a wave of his cane-hand. “What about Miss Rose? Has she shown any other colors?”

Swiping her screen once, the blonde woman pulled up a video feed from a drone in the area. “If by colors, you mean attitudes, then yes. She’s back to her happy-go-lucky mask but has shown a commanding and much more strategic side. I believe it is a byproduct of her mercenary lifestyle that she’s trying to hide in order to save face.”

“And her partner? Is it as I planned?”

“No, and I made sure of that,” Glynda sassed though her eyes were trained on her screen. Nevertheless, she made sure to inform her superior of the current events. “With her additional task and her early launch, she encountered Miss Belladonna, not Miss Schnee. The two seem to work well so far; Miss Rose has already been covered and Miss Belladonna is selfless as we have been told she was. Undoubtedly, this was better than pairing her with someone she would only argue with.”

“Be that as it may, they would complement each other in battle. With some rough spots, the pair would be inseparable in the future.”

“You have a good point, but she’s a mercenary and could put down the heiress with her superior skills. At the very least, Miss Belladonna understands her better and would work her speed up until even Summer would be a league below her..”

“Are you sure about that?”

“Of course. You may not be quite so observant, but her semblance is not her mother’s, it’s ever so slightly different.”

“Maybe you’re right. We will have to see to be sure.”

“That will have to wait. The last few students are coming,” Glynda announced as six figures ran toward the cliff.

“Do you mind taking care of that Nevermore for them?” Ozpin asked, looking past the group of children to the giant bird trailing behind them.

“Not at all.” With a sadistic smirk, the blonde witch plucked the Grimm of its own wings. A small bit of catharsis for a lot of pent up aggression.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladybug! One of the worst ship names (in my opinion) but one of my favs! I'm so excited to write some filler scenes of the two!
> 
> Anyway, I will be slowing down updates because I will be trying to write a new story (not a fanfic). Hopefully, I can get it done well and keep up this story. Now, I have this chapter's question for you all!
> 
> How do you want to see the team's relationship start out? Include as many or as little as you want! I'll pick out a few and we'll have a grand time!


	7. So, What now?

“And finally: Blake Belladonna. Ruby Rose. Weiss Schnee. Yang Xiao Long. The four of you retrieved the black queen pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team RWBY. Led by… Ruby Rose.”

“Congrats, Ruby.”

“Oh my gosh! I’m so proud of you, sis!”

“What!”

“I hate you, old man.”

With a groggy start, Ruby pushed herself into a sitting position. Something under her was soft, unusually so. Her cloak was never this soft, especially with her bag kept hidden in it. Looking down, she found herself in a bed. One of four beds in the room.

“Damn that old man,” she mumbled in incomprehensible babble due to her lack of energy and lack of trying. Forcing herself up, she peered down at her clothes or lack thereof at present. Only being in an oversized shirt was a large concern for her, especially when a blue-blooded priss and her older sister were in the same room. The secretive partner of hers held no real threat though, she was reading smut to bed anyway. “Four o’clock, that sucks,” she whispered dejectedly when she glanced at one of her teammate’s scroll that was charging.

With nothing else to do, she slinked into the bathroom, only to slip out to grab her still-packed bag. Rummaging through it, she found her utensils and trudged through the routine expected of her. Once that was done, she wrapped a towel around herself and stepped out of the space, where she promptly faced Blake.

Walking around a newly stunned girl, Ruby rummaged through an untouched dresser and found a uniform in her size. Dropping her towel, she slipped on all of her clothes in a flash before looking back at her partner.

Why was she just standing there? Surely her night’s reading left her with safe thoughts in the morning. Of course, the silver-eyed girl considered what could be happening, but whatever it is, she just gave up on randomly thinking it up. So, she did the one intelligent thing she could think of: she asked Blake.

“Blake, you alright?” As expected, no answer came. Then it was onto the unintelligent options. “Maybe if I scratch behind her ears. But which ones?”

“Don’t.”

“Oh, so you are functioning up there,” Ruby pointed out cheekily, finding Blake a step back from her than before. Pointing to the bathroom door, she said, “It’s free. Better take your time now before the Princess and Goldilocks need their hours.”

“Hours?” Blake repeated, standing in the middle of the room in only her black robe.

Stepping back over to the dresser, Ruby scrouged through her bag. “I mean, yeah, Yang’s got that mane of hair that she’s eventually going to need to take care of and there’s no telling how much time Weiss normally takes in the bath after her beauty sleep.” Leaving out sarcasm for innocence, Ruby pulled out her scroll and the necklace that Professor Goodwitch gave her. Stuffing the jewelry around her neck and under her uniform, she sighed when she realized her battery was starting to get low on her scroll.

Accepting the shorter girl’s guesses for the truth, Blake kept her eyes on her partner’s movements. “Ruby, can we talk?”

“Sure,” she replied, picking herself up to sit on the dresser and face her partner, “What do you wanna talk about?”

“I’ll tell you later. Mind waiting on the roof?”

“Kay.” Without another word, Ruby snatched her bag and slipped it across her torso, then proceeded to leave the dorm room. Meanwhile, Blake sighed at the girl’s easy-going way of things. Needing time to dwell on it, she slipped into the bathroom after grabbing her uniform. No need to scare someone by walking out in only a towel, even though she was sure none of them would get a good peek. Ruby’s short stature made for an awkward… exchange.

Sometime later, Ruby found herself sitting on the edge of the roof, careless of the potential dangers the height presented her. After a few more seconds of silence, she was joined by Blake, who remained on the flat floor instead of the raised ledge. Without turning around, the mercenary could tell whatever was going to happen would be tense, especially with the odd pattern of steps that her partner took.

“So, what now, Blake?” She asked, purging away the awkward moment of the whistling winds between them. Hearing a sound of surprise behind her, she perked up and glanced back. “Are you going to try to kill me? Talk me into helping you against the Fang? Oh, maybe just teaching you some tricks! That sounds like fun!”

“No! Nothing like that!” Blake exclaimed, shying away from the girl by waving her hands in front of her face.

“Figures,” Ruby said glumly before turning around, though she still stayed on the ledge.

“I just want to talk.” Hearing the phrase for the second time that day, the shorter girl motioned for her to continue. “What’s with you?”

“What do you mean?” Ruby tilted her head to the side.

“How are you so… two-faced?” She rephrased in a stammer, “Yesterday, you were so serious during that test, ready to just kill a Nevermore and then not caring when those girls were fighting a Death Stalker. But now, you’re… this! This happy-go-lucky camper! I know Dad said you had a fair share of quirks, but there has to be something that explains it.”

Ruby shrugged. She SHRUGGED.

Yet before Blake could begin venting her frustration, the nonchalant girl interrupted her. “There’s a time to be serious and a time to goof off. That’s all there is to it.”

“That can’t be all! No one else can just flick a switch and change like you can!” She exclaimed, her hands forming fists in front of her. “That’s not normal!”

“Then I’m not normal, simple as that,” the team leader replied. Hopping off the ledge, she walked over to her partner with a beaming smile, albeit a bit small. “You’ll get used to it sometime later, so it’s nothing to lose sleep over. Plus, do you really want me to just be either one all the time. A stone-cold mercenary that takes charge on her own? Or the weapons dork that would rather draw up weapon designs than talk to other people? It’d be pretty boring if I was just one of those things.”

Standing there and staring, Blake was peering down to her partner, who just kept her smile up. There was nothing the amber-eyed girl could think of to say. So, she just stared. It was awkward, but it was all she could even reason herself to do.

“Don’t try to figure me out like you figured out Adam. If my motives for being here are your concern, then don’t worry. I’m only sticking around for a roof over my hood and some food in my belly,” Ruby reasoned, watching those amber eyes flicker with new thoughts and logic, “Whatever your Dad told you can just go in the trash. You’ll learn about all the sides of me just by being my partner. Now, our class’ll start in an hour and I only snatched some toast from the cafeteria. See ya there, Blake!” Dashing back inside, the short enigma of a student snaked her way down to the cafeteria. 

Left on the rooftop, Blake slumped in her spot. Pulling her body over to the ledge, she sighed. Trying to figure out Ruby was a harder task than she thought it would be, even with what little her father and Sienna knew. Her father had got to meet to bubbly half of Ruby, sharing her odd little quirks with his daughter. Meanwhile, Sienna only saught business and that was all Blake got from her, well, before she left anyway. 

The Belladonna had found her partner to be a bit oblivious at first and a normal teenager, following her father’s comments. But found herself baffled the change to an all-business persona, albeit quite a brief change since she appeared to just switch back to her bubbly self.

Overall, she hated how complex people could be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is short and that's because I mainly typed it up so I can tell you lovely readers that I have some updates. At the moment, I'll be putting this story on the back burner, so I'd be lucky to type up a decently long chapter. Though I'll still try to get at least a monthly update, since typing up some fanfic stuff does help wash away my boredom for other stories. Either way, until I really get some time to work on all my projects, I'll probably leave this one off to the side.
> 
> I hope you all have a nice day, lovelies!


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, it's been a while, but I only promised a monthly update, so this should be acceptable, right?
> 
> Anyway, we have some more concerning issues, like the coronavirus or whatever it's being called. The only reason I'm bringing this up is to wish that all of you stay safe, wherever you are. As for me, I'm going to be typing up a fair share of chapters for stories of all kinds, so there may be another chapter on its way soon. No promises though.
> 
> But, enough of this! Onto the story!

After she left her class, Ruby made a mad dash to the cafeteria, much to the annoyance of all the strangers in the way. Not that she cared for any of them, especially when those people stood between her and a gourmet meal. So, when the rest of her team sat down at her table, she was already halfway through her food. But not the cookies. Those were saved for last.

In the meantime, she sat next to Blake at the end of the table while Yang was plopped down across the table. While the former was busy dissecting a grilled fish, the latter was more than delighted to spark up a conversation.

“So, Rubes, what do you think of Beacon so far? Pretty nice, right?” asked the blonde who leaned close with her head propped up by her arm.

Glancing up, she said, “Pretty boring. I think I’d prefer running around Atlas over sitting down for another one of Port’s stories.” Before she continued, she begrudgingly picked at a salad she had been _insisted_ to take by one of the chefs before they gave her a batch of cookies. “He could at least make it more exciting than him saving the day and getting the girl every time.”

“Tell me about it. He gave me so many creepy looks that I was scared of falling asleep,” Yang exclaimed, gaining an amused smile from her younger sister.

Unfortunately, one heiress was none too pleased with the two sisters. “How can you two disrespect a prized professor so casually? His story was… not the most interesting, but we can still learn from it!” When she perked up at the end, her team looked at her as if she was speaking another language. To be fair, she might as well have been when she was teamed up with a brawler, a traitor, and a mercenary.

“Really? We’re gonna learn how to turn Grimm to dust by looking at them?” The sarcastic reply came from Yang, but the sentiment was still shared by Blake. Though Ruby just sat there, a blank look gracing her features for a few seconds before she nodded. “Try to be realistic here, princess.”

“Well… maybe it’s his semblance! That has to be it!” exclaimed the white-haired girl who jumped up from her seat amidst her retort.

Before she said anything, Ruby swallowed down the next bite of her salad. “Sorry, but there’s no record of any semblance like that. The closest thing would be Goodwitch’s telekinesis, but she can’t turn anything to dust right away.”

“Then a weapon! It has to be a weapon!”

“Port uses a blunderbuss and battle-ax hybrid,” Ruby said, picking at the last few morsels of her food. Scooping it all up, she munched on it as quickly as possible. “I’ve only seen one weapon that comes close to what Port imagines and he’d have no luck with it. Seriously, I knew that people come in all shapes and sizes, but I thought there’d be some sort of expectations for Huntsmen.”

“And what do you know? You’re just some little girl that got lucky,” the heiress said, crossing her arms. 

“Oh, you gonna take that Rubes?”

“Sure, don’t see why not,” the youngest team member nonchalantly replied.

Perked up by this turn, Blake turned away from her skeleton of a fish and said, “Are you sure? You can fight anyone here with ease, you don’t need to back down.”

“I’m not backing down, I’m just taking a hit and not giving one back.” With clear disinterest, Ruby scraped up the crumbs on her plate and set the emptied dishes aside. Now that her main course was finished, she pulled her small dessert of cookies toward her and began munching on the treats. “If it’s any consolation, we have Goodwitch’s class next.”

Leaving that message up in the air, the team of girls went back to the food in front of them. The first to finish was Ruby and she walked around the room afterward. She saw some pretty odd things, well, odd for someone who spent half of her life traveling the road and killing Grimm. There were some familiar faces and teams among the crowd that she deigned to avoid along with classic high school clichés such as a bully that’s just so happened to be a jock and a group of gossiping girls chattering away constantly. Those girls got on her nerves though; they didn’t need to point out how small and lean she was out loud!

Nevertheless, she returned to her team after having sated her mild curiosity for what being at a school was like. She was sure there were a plethora of things she would experience if she stayed, but now she had a good estimate of what her departure would cause. Not that she planned to leave, it was just an option. A very easy and tempting option.

“Ruby, have you seen Jaune?”

When she whipped around, the young girl found a familiar redhead standing to her side with worry plastered all over her face. “Sorry, haven’t seen him,” she said, “Did something happen recently?”

“Not that I know of,” the redhead said, “He said he was going to hang out with some old friends, but that was twenty minutes ago.”

“Weird, I didn’t think he had any other friends,” the shorter girl noted.

“Isn’t that a bit of a rude thing to say?”

“Maybe, but it’s true.” She spotted the remainder of Jaune’s team and pointed them out. “Those two and us two are probably the only friends he has. But yesterday, he only knew me before the whole exam business, otherwise, he wouldn’t have any reason to be so nervous when it came to looking for a team.”

“I suppose you’re right, but then who did he go off with?” Pyrrha asked after all that logic had sunk in. Before her younger companion could reply, the bell chose to ring, or ding really. It was hard to tell if it was a school bell or the watchtower bells, but it was a bell either way. “We have Professor Goodwitch next, right? Maybe we’ll see him there.”

“Probably.” In comfortable silence, the two girls made their way down the hall, completely ignorant of the two teams trailing after them.

* * *

With a final kick, Pyrrha had defeated her opponent without taking a single shot herself. The sight alone was odd for Ruby. She knew her friends generally fell into one of two categories: strong or connected. This time, she had both in one redhead, but that only made the disparity between her and the other first-years all more apparent. And she was only comparing speeds.

"Miss Nikos, choose your next opponent." Broken out of her thoughts by her blonde professor, Ruby perked up to the point where she was almost bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"May I spar with Ruby, Professor?" the redhead asked with a fraction of the shorter girl's excitement shown through her own smile.

Professor Goodwitch stole a look over at Ruby, only for the girl to meet her eyes with a cheeky grin. So, she turned away and sighed at the troublesome teenagers placed in her care, not that any proved to be helpful in any regard. Nevertheless, she complied, “All of you, keep this in mind: Miss Rose will not be allowed to spar with anyone without my express permission and supervision. If I find anyone disobeying my orders, you will be expelled immediately.” Swishing back around, the blonde teacher hardened her gaze over the silver-eyed girl. “All of this applies to you too, Miss Rose. And trust me, I’ll know.”

“So… Does that mean I can fight Pyrrha?”

“Just this once,” she replied with a tense brow.

“Yes!”

In the blink of an eye, the cloaked girl was on the fighting stage, her weapon ready in its scythe form. Her expression flickered between rabid excitement to a trained ferocity as she looked at her opponent who held a spear and a shield.

Meanwhile, the small crowd of students leaned forward, their attention brought entirely to the Mistral champion and the girl shrouded in mystery. Among them, Blake and Jaune had shoved their way to the front to witness the oncoming battle between their partners. The latter was a bit more conflicted than the ashen-haired girl, considering that his partner was probably going to beat up his friend. Although Blake was sure that Ruby could handle the redhead with ease. Her only doubt was whether she would try to kill her or disable her.

“Pyrrha’s got this in the bag. Ruby would be lucky to get a hit on her,” Weiss said from the back of the crowd, where she peered over the heads of her classmates.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Yang replied, “Sure, Pyrrha’s some champion, but Rubes has got speed on lock. Plus, with that scythe of hers, she could probably give my uncle a run for his money.”

“So what? That girl’s nothing but talk.” Brushing a few strands of hair out of her face, Weiss looked at her supposed team leader, who was rather excited to lose. “She’s two years behind all of us and uses an impractical weapon. Even Professor Goodwitch thinks that; why else would she make Ruby refrain from sparring?”

“Perhaps it is because she is a variable.” Turning to the sound of a new voice, Yang and Weiss found a green-clad young man behind them with a ginger girl that was grinning next to him. “There’s practically nothing about her online.”

“Why’re you looking up stuff on my sister?” Yang raised her fists high enough for the man to get the message.

Unfazed by the blonde’s threat, he said, “Jaune and Pyrrha were talking about her this morning after your team was rushing into the class late, so I got curious. Besides, Pyrrha said that Ruby was one of her only friends. Naturally, anyone would be a little suspicious of that.”

“So what did you find that’s oh so important?” Weiss sarcastically asked.  
“A few links to the Huntsmen archives about some out of commission fighters, but that’s about it. As I said, there’s practically nothing about her.”

“Isn’t that awesome?” the ginger perked up from the man’s side. “It’s like she’s some mystery and our only clue is from Pyrrha! Oh my gosh! This year’s going to be so much fun!”

“Quiet down!” Upon hearing the blonde teacher’s shout, all of the students dropped the conversations, no matter how interesting it was. “Good, now, you both know the rules, the first one whose aura drops into the yellow zone loses. Are we clear, girls?”

“Yes, professor!”

“Crystal!”

“Then get started!”

Immediately, Ruby shot toward her opponent with her scythe reeled back for a swing. Pyrrha wasted no time in hurling her shield at the girl, aimed for her lower chest and right on course before a bullet shot out of the scythe’s tang, propelling Ruby off course, but out of harm’s way.

With her momentum lost, the shorter girl took the chance to fire off a few shots, each one sliding across the redhead’s Aura. Stone-faced, Ruby ended her barrage when her weapon’s clip ran dry, right on time for Pyrrha to retrieve her shield using her semblance.

“What’s next, Champ?” Ruby asked, a playful grin replacing the grim expression she had maintained during her shot attack. For an answer, she was treated to another helping of her friend’s shield. Before the makeshift frisbee made contact with her face, she ducked out of the way and folded up her scythe. “My turn,” she whispered under her breath. In a swirling bullet of rose petals, Ruby closed the distance between her and her opponent, allowing her to knock the redhead off balance by slamming her folded up weapon into her side. Unfortunately, she didn’t account for the shield being reeled back to Pyrrha by way of a semblance and the hunk of metal collided with the back of her skull. Knocked face-first into the ground, both girls were spread across the floor.

“Ruby wins!”

Startled by the announcement, the two fighters whipped their heads over to the screens overhead. Sure enough, Pyrrha’s Aura had dropped into the yellow zone, but so had Ruby’s. Turning toward their teacher, the two girls both wordlessly asked for clarification from the witch.

“Miss Nikos was hit by Miss Rose’s weapon which dropped her into the yellow zone, followed shortly after by Miss Rose’s Aura dropping into the yellow because of the shield.”

“Looks like I’m still faster,” Ruby smirked at her opponent.

“Well, your semblance makes it impossible to catch up,” Pyrrha said, “But you still fall short on your follow-up.”

“Give me a break. Most people are done after my first few shots.”

“Then I guess I’m not most people.”

“If you girls are done with the chit-chat, then maybe we can get back to the point of this class,” Glynda interrupted with the ever-present frown that marred her features. Listening to the woman, the two previous combatants hopped off the stage and shoved through the crowd of students to find their respective teams, who just so happened to be talking amongst each other.

“That was great, Rubes!” Yang exclaimed, pulling in her little sister for a hug despite her obvious discomfort.

“She got lucky,” Weiss growled out under her breath.

“Ah, stuff it, princess. You’re just jealous.”

“Actually, she’s right,” Pyrrha said, only to stop when the shouts of hormone-driven teenagers roared out from the fighting stage.

Sliding up to the redhead’s right, the heiress took on a cocky smirk unbefitting her regal features. “See, what did I tell you? She just got lucky and I bet she wouldn’t even get one hit in if they went at it again.”

“That’s not quite what I meant.”

“Ha! As if!” Yang said, “Ruby can run circles around all of us without using her semblance! So what’s all that fancy jewelry gonna do for you, huh, princess?”

“I know I’m fast, but isn’t that a bit of a stretch?”

“You must be a complete dolt! Someone who lacks skills as much as she does stands no chance against a Schnee! Much less anyone else!”

“But she has many skills.”

“Oh, like your skills are any fucking better! What's your posture and etiquette crap gonna do in a fight?”

“And now sis is cussing.”

“More than that fat you have on your chest, you blonde bimbo! All you’re good for is a distraction and a human meat shield!”

“I wonder how they became partners.”

“You’re just jealous, you flat-chested priss! All that breeding has made you look flatter than a board and just as stiff as the stick up your ass!”

“Dunno. But where are our partners?”

“Ugh! You are insufferable! It’s as clear as day that you two idiots are related with your dimwitted selves!”

“Probably watching the matches.”

“Like you’re any better with your stuck up attitude! Honestly, I’d rather switch partners than stay stuck with you! And it’s only been a fucking day!”

“I’mma go change. These two will be at it for a while.”

“Well, the feelings are mutual! But at least I’d be able to find a new partner! Unlike you! Hell, I bet you’d have to seduce them with that fat you call breasts!”

“I’ll join you then.”

“Stop it with all your lies, you spoiled brat! If it weren’t for your money, you wouldn’t be here in the first place!”

“And if I could, I would expel you both right now,” Glynda cut in, standing just a few steps away from the feuding pair of girls, “By the way, you both have detention. Together.”

“Look what you’ve done!”

* * *

After the first day of classes had ended, Team RWBY found themselves vastly separated across the school grounds. Yang had wedged her way back among her friends, keeping her away from the bossy washboard as she would say; Blake decided to camp out in the library until the feud died down; Weiss found a public training ground after serving detention, so she took up some basic forms with her rapier; and Ruby, well, no one knew where she was, but if they looked on the roof, they would see the cloaked girl lazily bathing in the setting sun.

 _“If not for my sister and the heiress, I’d say this school thing might be alright,”_ Ruby thought while she stared up at the passing clouds. The odd fluffy objects were oddly wet when she traveled through them on occasion. Thankfully she usually had her goggles when she made any big dives. Speaking of which, she left the pair of lenses back in the dorm room. _“They shouldn’t be back for a while. Maybe I can take a shower, but I don’t have anything to change into. Well, there is that shirt, but the witch would probably put me in detention for wearing that.”_

Throwing caution to the wind, the huntress-in-training stood up and shook out the numb feeling in her legs. Then, she dashed across the rooftops until she was on the windowsill of what she believed to be her team’s dorm. The only hiccup in the route was the lock on the window, but with a card of Lien, she snagged the lock up and was able to swoop into the room where she froze in place.

It was definitely Team RWBY’s dorm, that much was clear by the pile of Blake’s books and Ruby’s bag on top of one of the dressers. Though the scattered posters and moved beds left a story to be told. Nevertheless, the girl pulled out one of the few articles of clothing she owned and retreated into the shower.

After taking longer than she should have in the bathroom, Ruby took to her bed, which just happened to be the one farthest to the right. It was softer than anything she had slept on, but dirt and tree branches would barely compare to any bed. Still, it was a simple luxury for her to enjoy without any immediate costs. So, taking a nap while listening to music should be fine in just her oversized shirt.

Well, it was fine for a few hours.

“What in the world are you wearing!?”

Groaning at the screech, Ruby sat up and looked at the door, where Weiss stood with a few hairs wildly out of place. “Um… a shirt?” she answered while taking off her headphones.

“You dolt! Just put something else on!” She shrieked again, much to the annoyance of her teammates present.

“Does it really matter? I’m going to sleep in this anyway, so what’s the point of putting something else on?” Shifting her legs around, Ruby let the toned muscle out from under the bedsheets, which made her flash the heiress.

In an instant, the white-haired girl rushed over and threw the bedsheets back over Ruby before she shouted, “To preserve some modesty, duh! If one sister is going to slut it up with her friends, then the other sister should know better than to follow her footsteps!”

“Okay, hold on,” Ruby began, “First of all, my sister is not a slut, she just isn’t as strict and proper as you. Second, the only other clothes I have are my uniform, so if you’re going to yell at me, then at least let me defend myself. I’m not some child who needs to be scolded for everything I do wrong.”

Weiss’s face paled. “That’s _all_ you have?”

Rolling her eyes, Ruby said, “Well, yeah. I could buy some more clothes with my savings, but I always carried just what I needed.” As if to prove her point, she jabbed her thumb toward the worn-out messenger bag on top of the dresser.

“Then we’re going shopping,” Weiss declared, her color returning. Reaching the door, she turned back and said, “Come on, I’m not letting my team leader sleep in that rag of a shirt.”

“Do we have to?” Ruby whined as she spread herself out on her bed.

“Absolutely!” she shouted, “You are my team leader and represent the entire team, so I’m not letting ourselves look like a bunch of bums picked off the street. Plus, if that sister of yours let you stay like this, then it’s her fault! So, if I just fix this, I have a leg up on her! Genius, don’t you think?”

“More like a major waste of time and money,” the younger girl drawled out, “Besides, everyone’s going to sleep by now and you haven’t even started on your homework.”

Turning over to one of the room’s desks, Weiss’s ears flushed with heat when she spotted the small pile of papers she had yet to fill out. “Then we’ll just go shopping on the weekend! None of us will be busy and we’ll have plenty of time to get everything you need,” she exclaimed, “Now, I’ll just… get to work.”

Begrudgingly, the white-haired girl sat down at the desk and filled out the small stack of papers collected from each class for review and permission slips. Though why teachers would give those out so early was beyond the scope of the students’ understanding. Thankfully, it still gave Ruby the reprieve she needed to pick her headphones back up and rest on her soft bed.

“It’s almost like you have two big sisters.”

“Shut up, Blake, I’m trying to sleep.”

Going back to her book, Blake left Ruby alone. But that didn’t save her from anyone else’s interruption.

“Hey! Now that was some party!”

“I’m done!”

In a burst of petals, Ruby escaped the room and her drunk sister, all while only dressed in an oversized t-shirt. By the time she stopped, she was on one of the few balcony spaces in the building, where a magnificent view of the shattered moon greeted her like an old friend. Sitting on the ledge, she kicked her feet absentmindedly, awaiting the next curveball life would send her way.

For the next few minutes, nothing happened. She was allowed to bask in the moonlight and let the breeze rustle her bob of hair. Nothing bothered her save for her own thoughts. Those thoughts included the bright mop of blonde walking below her. It was just Jaune though, albeit a Jaune with his arms filled with fatty foods she had never tried before. Not that the food wasn’t tempting, but Ruby just watched him from her perch. He seemed put out as he carried the treats, almost pitifully so.

Well, she gave up on holding back her morals and instincts. So, she dropped down next to him, only to startle him enough to make him jump. Catching the few treats he had dropped, she asked, “So, who’s making you get all this junk?”

“What?” He spun around to hide his face. “What are you talking about? This is just… it’s for me! Yeah, they’re all for me! You know, I’m growing and so is my appetite, right? So I gotta eat more food and all that.”

“Wow, I thought Blake was terrible at lying, but you’re on a whole ‘nother level,” she said while handing him a few of the discarded bags of junk food, “Plus, there’s more than enough food for a midnight snack here even if you skipped dinner. Kinda suspicious, don’t you think?”

“When you put it like that..”

“Don’t sound too sad. Even if you were a better liar, Pyrrha and I know enough about you to figure out that someone’s bullying you.” She cheekily smiled at the much taller man.

“Wait, how’d you know someone’s bullying me?” he whispered frantically.

“Because you just told me.”

“Huh?”

“It’s simple psychology, Jaune. Don’t worry, hang with me long enough and you’ll figure some stuff out.” Letting the blonde carry all the treats, Ruby followed after him back into the dormitory. “So, who’s the big bad bully? Is it someone in our class? Actually, it probably is, but I didn’t bother to learn anyone’s name, so you’ll just have to tell me what they look like.”

“Ruby, just hold on,” Jaune said as he did his best to motion for her to stop, but there was a small pile of junk food that stopped him. Either way, she stopped her odd process of deduction. “Look, I can handle this. You don’t need to help me. Cardin’s just another bully and all bullies just need to be shown who’s better, right?” Although she shook her head, he went on, “I’ll just lure him into a…”

“False sense of security?”

“Yeah, that. I’ll lure him into that and then just take him by surprise. It’ll be easy! Totally simple! Completely doable!”

“You’re a dummy, you know that?” she asked teasingly, “Don’t be so stubborn. I’m your friend and friends help each other out, so just let me handle this, alright? All I need to know is what he looks like and I’ll give him a fear of all things red.”

“Any chance I can talk you out of this?” he asked despite knowing the answer.

“Nope,” she happily answered with a gleaming grin, “And even if you did, Pyrrha will just do the same thing that I would. Probably with a sword instead of a scythe though.”

“His name is Cardin.”

“You know I don’t know who that is.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To think I made this all happen in one day... Goodness Beacon's got issues.
> 
> So, obviously, the next chapter features Cardin Winchester, everyone's most forgettable bully! Besides that, Yang and Weiss are still feuding; wish Ruby luck with those two...
> 
> By the way, let's get some things out of the way...
> 
> 1) Why are Weiss and Yang almost duking it out on the first day?  
> Simple, Weiss and Ruby already got off on the wrong foot, so the princess has some beef with our protagonist. By extension, she basically has some beef with anyone who outright supports her, especially ones who bring up the whole age thing or Ruby's skills in general. It's not the most logical when we think Volume 6 or 7, but this was Weiss back in the day and I'm going to respect that for a while.
> 
> 2) Where is this story headed?  
> For those wondering, I have a general idea, which are more like destinations. Essentially, I know where I want to go, but not how to get there with my first draft of this. Otherwise, when it comes to character arcs, that's left to whatever the plot steers it to. Then, my favorite part... pairings. Look, I love pairings as much as the next obsessed writer, but there are literally three routes I can see working just right now and potential for two more (at least) if I play my words right. So, if you're here for pairings, just wait and see.
> 
> 3) Fight scene. Too short. Explain. Now.  
> I mean, I was never the best fight scene and was genuinely confused about how long I should make it. But all things considered, I thought the... three paragraphs... I could squeeze out did some respect. Though I know that both Pyrrha's and Ruby's Aura wouldn't drop that fast; that'll be clarified later (probably next chapter if Weiss or Yang decide to bitch and moan). Oh, and sorry if you like Weiss and Yang (most relatable and favorite characters for me respectively), but right now, my story doesn't work with them being the best of teammates, much less friends.
> 
> Sorry, I didn't want to save all of that for some later chapter. Either way, stay safe, guys!


	9. A Bully's Retribution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Karma always comes and Ruby makes a new friend! But it's time for a reaper to strike back!

Pyrrha Nikos could only be described as anxious. Everyone that she passed noticed it, whether it because of her tense shoulders or the frequent glances to her scroll, they knew. Yet no one took the chance to stop her. Aside from barely knowing the redhead, most decided to watch her from afar due to their expectation of some juicy gossip or a fight on the horizon. Many more hoped for the latter since few lasted more than a minute against her in Professor Goodwitch’s class.

In all actuality, she was running around the campus looking for help. If only her helper hadn’t blocked her number, but to be fair, her hyper teammate had stolen her phone and tried countless times to talk to her. Entirely understandable, but highly annoying.

So far, she had checked the training grounds, which ended up in a few autographs; the classrooms, but those were empty; and the dorms, only for a fight to start up. It was tiresome to even listen to, but at least that last visit was helpful. She would have looked in the library last if not for Blake after all. The only problem was she had no clue where the library was. The school directory didn’t help and everyone walked away from her as if she was on a warpath. 

But when she finally got to the library, she had no idea it would be so crowded. How many people needed to check out a book on a Tuesday?

Then, like a candle in the darkness, she spotted the infamous red cloak among the sea of uniforms. In a mad dash, Pyrrha made her way over to the table, completely oblivious to the shouts of “No, running!” from countless people. Slamming her hands on the table, she made a pile of paper shift around and fold up, much to the dismay of the girl working on them.

“Finally! I’ve found you!” the redhead huffed out, only to receive absolute confusion from the cloak-wearing girl. Once she caught her breath, she asked, “Why are you here? I was looking all over campus to talk to you.”

“Well, I _was_ reworking and copying these blueprints into my sketchbook until you messed up my setup.” Directing an annoyed look at the scattered papers and rolled-up blueprints, Ruby decided to stop working. So, she closed up her sketchbook and grouped the blueprints together so she could wrap them all under one rubber band. “Anyway, what happened?”

“Jaune left us for those bullies again. You know, the ones you said you were going to take care of a couple of weeks ago?” she explained in a whisper.

Ruby cast a glance at the disturbed students around them. “I know who they are.”

“And?” the taller girl asked as she leaned closer to her friend, “Weren’t you going to do something about it?”

Stashing her sketchbook in her bag, Ruby said, “Yeah, I was.”

At this, Pyrrha arced one of her delicately arched eyebrows. “What do you mean by was? Surely you know that the longer this lasts, the worse it will get.”

“I _was_ going to stop the whole thing without Jaune knowing it was me, but I talked to him two weeks ago about it. He was pretty adamant about solving it on his own but gave up when I mentioned that you would handle it if I didn’t. So I was waiting for him to take initiative,” she answered nonchalantly while placing the bundled blueprints in the crook of her right arm.

“But you know this is pertinent. At the very least, you should have contacted a professor when you knew for sure.”

“Pyr, you and I both know how guys are. Everyone has their pride and feels entitled to protect it before they lose it, even if it’s small,” the shorter girl reasoned with a shake of her head, “I should know. Plenty of mーmy acquaintances have gotten themselves killed or put behind bars because they’re protecting their pride.”

“Then why were you escorting him to every class?” the redhead asked. Before Ruby could get up, she placed a hand down on the table to give the girl a silent signal to stay seated.

But in response, she shrugged. “I dunno. He just walks with me whenever I’m not trying to hide.”

“Were you not just trying to hide?” Pyrrha asked with suspicion lifting her tone higher.

“Yeah, when I was getting over here, but Blake usually comes to get me for dinner. Something about me stopping Yang from turning into a harpy like Weiss. Anyway, I don’t try to hide once I escape, well, unless I was on a mission but I’m not.”

On cue, Pyrrha’s stomach grumbled with the growl of a pack of Beowolves. Immediately, warmth swelled in the redhead’s cheeks. “Speaking of dinner, shall we eat together?”

“Sure,” Ruby beamed, “I just gotta get these back to the workshop. Just ask the chefs for the Rose special for me and I’ll meet you there.” Getting up from her chair, the black-haired girl noticed a white blur passing through the hallways. “Actually, I might be late. Don’t wait for me.” Without another word, the youngest Beacon student made a mad dash out of the library, distinctly in the opposite direction of the white-haired person who passed by just seconds ago.

Unfortunately for the mercenary, her night would not be easy.

“Ruby! There you are! How dare you ditch me! We were supposed to go shopping a week ago, you dolt!”

Through the doors of the library, Pyrrha saw the heiress chase down her friend and found herself unable to withhold her laughter at the sight.

* * *

It did not take long for Ruby to be caught between two excited shoppers, but it did take three days before she got a moment of peace and quiet away from her team. By that time, she had her own wardrobe, outfitted with two distinct tastes in mind and divided as such. Which was how the usually cloaked girl found herself with a cardigan instead of her usual cloak. At the very least, her teammates kept to her usual color palette, so she didn’t receive too many stares. Although those that did stare dropped their gaze straight to the jeans hugging her legs.

To find some refuge from the wandering eyes of Beacon, she escaped into the workshop where she was lost among the busybodies already in there. She took to one of the empty tables decked out with a plethora of tools and parts from whoever used it last. Before all else, she pulled out her sketchbook and flipped through the numerous designs, many of which she forgot whose weapon it detailed.

The first weapon on her to-do list was her own; a sniper and scythe hybrid with a scrapyard style to it. Launching it into scythe form, Ruby whet the blade with a small brick lying on the table. After avoiding the sparks and making a few quick swings with it, she dislodged the handle from the blade. With the handle, she tossed the long rod around a few times with ease. Then, she began to clean out the hollow tubing and slowly tuned out the cacophony of noises around her.

Lost in the monotony of maintenance, Ruby had cleaned out and sharpened the parts of her weapon before putting it all back together. Once she had finished, she had finally zoned back into reality when she heard a camera flash.

When she turned around though, all she saw was a brunette with rabbit ears admiring the photo that just came out of her camera. “Excuse me,” Ruby piped up, “Whatever’s on that photo needs to be burned.”

“Oh! Sorry!” the Faunus girl exclaimed in surprise as she looked up to meet Ruby’s gaze. Turning the photo around, she said, “It’s just a picture of your weapon, I don’t take pictures of people with this camera. So I hope it’s okay if I keep it.”

“Nope. Not okay. My weapon’s one-of-a-kind and if you wanna take photos of weapons, how about you ask first?” Ruby replied, her tone descending to icy levels. Before the brunette girl knew what happened, her photo was snatched out of her hands and waved in front of her. “What do you even need this for? It’s a pretty bad picture even if my weapon’s in it.”

Stowing away her camera behind her back, the bunny-eared girl answered, “Well, my weapon is my camera and I need pictures of other weapons to use it properly. So, um… that’s why I came here.”

“Because there’s a bunch of new students with weapons you don’t have pictures of?” the black-haired girl guessed with a glance over the room.

The photographer nodded. “I need a new photo every time I use one up,” she meekly said.

“Sounds like a pretty big drawback,” the younger girl commented. Grabbing her assembled weapon, she tossed the huge hunk of metal over to the other girl, who leaped away from it. “Seriously? It’s just a scythe.”

While Ruby picked her trusty weapon back up, the bunny-eared girl replied, “Yes, but it’s entirely metal! I can’t lift that!”

As if to make a silent boast, Ruby spun her scythe around before collapsing it up. “Then how would you learn to use someone else’s weapon? You can’t just watch someone and learn, especially someone like me whose weapon works perfectly with their semblance.”

“Oh,” she muttered dejectedly.

“Yeah, a bit disappointing. My teacher kept raving on about being able to use it without my semblance, but I prefer using it. Feels natural, you know?” Shoving her scythe on the table, the silver-eyed girl beamed down at it. The small scratches were brushed over with a finger and the dents were checked over to make sure it wasn’t a big obstruction.

“I know that feeling,” the taller girl mumbled. Peeking over Ruby’s shoulder, she spotted a hand-drawn sketch of the weapon’s blueprints, including the numerous forms it could take on.

“By the way, my name’s Ruby,” she said quietly, slipping the photo in front of the Faunus girl.

“I’m Velvet,” she softly replied while enamored by the continued maintenance Ruby was doing. When she realized how close she was, she stepped back and held her hands together behind her back. “That’s a wonderful weapon you made.”

“Thanks.” Now that she started working again, Ruby kept her focus on Crescent Rose alone. The dents were too important to ignore for some stranger.

“I should get going now. Bye, Ruby.”

“Bye.”

With a glance back at the busy girl, Velvet collected herself and slipped out of the workshop. Meanwhile, Ruby stopped dismantling the blade of her scythe. The picture was left behind and soon found itself stashed away in a worn-out bag. Turning back to her scythe, Ruby stripped herself of the scarlet cardigan and began hammering out some dents.

* * *

For Team RWBY, the weekend passed by in hostile silence. Of course, Ruby had ditched her teammates so she could work on weapon maintenance; she spent Saturday improving Crescent Rose and most of Sunday checking over Blake’s Gambol Shroud. In comparison, her partner was catching up on some reading in her free time.

The other half of the team dreaded spending unnecessary time together. Weiss divided her schedule between studying and training, most of which was spent in private. Yang decided to fool around and disappeared into Vale whenever the sun was out and sometimes late into the night. Nonetheless, many were glad the two were separated, especially since their eardrums would be spared.

Though when the weekend came to a close, the four were brought back together for classes. It was peaceful for what few classes they had, even going so far as to be on neutral ground for a whole day. But good things never last forever. As such, Yang and Weiss sparred with each other in Professor Goodwitch’s class, earning both girls detention for continuing the match until both were injured and their auras were broken.

That was how Blake and Ruby found peace all the way until dinner. No fussing over how the youngest of the team was dressed or who had finished the homework, just soothing silence as the two worked on whatever caught their attention.

“Ruby, it’s time for dinner,” Blake called out from her bed.

At one of the room’s desks, Ruby continued to sketch something. “Give me a minute.” With a few delicate strokes, Ruby had another addition to her scythe loosely drawn out. “There, finished!” she exclaimed as she stretched out her back, “Now, let’s go!”

“Hold on,” Blake said, stopping the team leader in her tracks.

“What is it now?”

“Wash your hands.” Looking down at her hands, Ruby just saw the calloused, pale skin in front of her. Blake saw otherwise and twisted the girl’s hands inward, showing all the loose pencil shavings and graphite that stuck to her skin. 

“Fine. Then we’re gonna eat.” After a quick nod from her partner, Ruby dashed into the bathroom, cleaning up in a flurry of red and black, trademark colors of her new wardrobe. Once her hands were scrubbed clean, the two partners made their way down to the cafeteria, where dinner had already been given out to those there. 

Ordering their usual meals, the two girls sat down and waited across from each other. Not much was spoken by either. Each knew what could be talked about, but knew it wouldn’t go far. And even the few subjects the two would agree on would travel into the more private parts of their lives. Which was how Ruby ended up scrolling through her playlists, adjusting a few here and there.

In the midst of her fiddling, Ruby had not heard her meal order being called, so Blake retrieved both of theirs. With food now in front of her, Ruby zoned back into reality, much to the silent amusement of her teammate.

“You’ve been zoning out a lot lately,” Blake commented while dissecting her fish from its bones.

“Yeah,” Ruby said, bringing her salad closer, “There’s just a lot of my mind lately. Between classes and keeping up on my training, I’ve been kind of out of it. Plus, there’s a bunch of rules I have to follow and those are no fun.”

“At least you haven’t gotten detention yet.” On cue, the blonde brawler and the stuck-up heiress rushed into the room and split up. The hallway wasn’t big enough, they appeared to need fifty feet away from each other. “But we can train together. I’m sure Professor Goodwitch can’t deny us that since we’re partners.”

“Maybe after that field trip on Friday,” Ruby agreed, even if she had many reasons to turn Blake down. She swallowed another bite of her appetizer, providing a brief pause in their conversation while Team JNPR sat beside them. “Some speed training would be good. Oh, combo moves would be good too.”

“Combo moves?” Pyrrha spoke up, “I never thought I would hear you suggesting to work on combo moves.”

“Hey!” Ruby jabbed her fork toward Pyrrha. “I can work with someone just fine, thank you very much. I just don’t do it much.”

“Only because no one wants to work with you,” Ren added.

“Okay, I take offense to that.” Already, Ruby was done with her appetizer and moved on to the main course.

“To be fair, you often go off on your own without telling anyone and charge headfirst without much of a plan,” he replied as if retelling facts, “Not to mention your two teammates and their endless arguments. As the team leader, you should have resolved this as soon as possible.”

“That last part is hardly my fault. Those two just make bad partners,” Ruby retorted, “And even if I wanted to knock some sense into them, Weiss won’t listen to me half the time. Yang’s easy to take care of since she actually listens, but she’s got an incredibly short fuse that Weiss is constantly cutting down.”

“What would make Weiss listen to reason?” Pyrrha asked with a glance to the rather quiet Jaune beside her. 

“Probably a spar,” Ruby said, “She thinks you’re always holding back on me in class. I bet showing her how good I am would make her see reason.”

“Well, you’re holding back with Pyrrha already, so won’t you have to hold back even more?” Ren asked before his ginger partner climbed over him.

“You’re holding back on Pyrrha!?” Nora exclaimed as was almost on top of Ren's head.

“She has to,” Pyrrha answered, much to Ruby’s gratitude, “If she didn’t, she would likely try to kill me or knock me unconscious. She really isn’t meant for sparring or even a tournament match with how she fights.”

Ren nodded along, completely ignoring his partner’s closeness. “She usually aims off the mark or collapses her scythe when she spars. I would habit the guess that she mainly practiced by fighting Grimm considering that her weapon is designed for large cleaving swings.”

“We’re training to fight Grimm, so it only makes sense, right?” Ruby asked, pitching in her two cents with her gaze directed at her quickly diminishing meal.

“I suppose.”

Cutting off the conversation there, the group went back to their meals. Before long, Ruby finished hers and gave back the dishes to the kitchen staff. Afterward, she hovered around the table, talking every now and then, but only staying to wait for Blake.

As for the ashen-haired girl, she deliberately slowed down to make her partner wait. She was sure the younger girl would notice it if she wasn’t so distracted. Thankfully, she had both Ren and Pyrrha throwing questions around to keep the girl off her game, if only as a side-effect. Nonetheless, it did give her some time to settle her thoughts while she had them. Such as, could Ruby kill Pyrrha? And how can someone keep up with her?

Meanwhile, Ruby was just that: distracted. She eventually drew herself out of all the conversations among the group, but that led to her being absorbed into her scroll. At the very least, she would have something to listen to while she slept. That was when she heard a yelp above the muffled voices in the room. Twisting around the find the source, brought whiplash and a hint of recognition to her.

Velvet, the rabbit Faunus and invasive photographer, was being tugged by the ear. Of course, Ruby would let this be had she not noticed the arrogant brunette who was bullying her. So, she did the only reasonable thing. She swept through the crowd and stood right behind the armored bully.

“Where’d your friends go, you filthy animal? I bet they ran away! Never wanted to be on a team with one of your kind!” The bully laughed at the yelp that escaped Velvet’s lips, despite her best efforts to hold it back. In the bully’s shadow, Ruby swiped a fork off the nearby table and poked his back with it. “Who daresー”

“Just shut up.” Silver eyes steeled themselves as the girl gazed up at the bully. Turning around, he let go of Velvet’s ears and grabbed Ruby’s shirt. “Run now and I might forget this ever happened,” she warned with her fork right under his chin.

He grabbed her extended arm. “Right, like a pipsqueak like you can even land a hit on me.” As if to prove his point, he lifted her by the shirt until she was eye-level with her, which brought her nearly a foot off the ground. “Shoulda just stayed put, shortie. Then you wouldn’t get hurt.” Raising his knee, he was about to slam it into her gut, but then he felt his world spin.

To everyone else, a swirl of red and brown hurdled toward the wall, where Ruby held a fork against the brunette’s chin and a foot on his armor. When she added pressure, there was an audible crunch followed by a pained groan from the older teen.

“Keep this up and you’re the one who’s gonna be hurt.” Her threat pierced through the stiff silence of the cafeteria, almost echoing in the large room. “That goes for you _and_ your team. So don’t take me lightly, or you’ll get to know how deadly a scythe is firsthand.” From the wall, she could hear three whimpers and knew she was done. Pulling herself away from the crumbled bully, she was about to walk away but remembered what else the bully had done. “Oh, and Cardin, leave Jaune alone,” she threw out over her shoulder casually.

Passing through the stunned crowd of students, she snaked her way back over to Velvet, where the rest of Cardin’s team happened to be. Glaring at them once sent all three running out of the room, much to her disappointment.

Nonetheless, she looked back at the rabbit Faunus. “You forgot your photos in the workshop. Drop by to pick them up, kay?” she said, a smile misplaced in the dangerous chill of the room. At least no one had to see the bone-rattling silver gaze she still had.

“OーOkay,” the brunette girl replied with a shaky nod.

“Cool, see you later then.” Waving back to Velvet, Ruby slipped out of the room. Everyone was at a loss of words, most not entirely sure what happened. Though one particular redhead couldn’t help but smile at the display.

* * *

It wasn’t long before the entire school was in a riot about the fight in the cafeteria or lack thereof. Ruby would never call that a fight, even if it did last longer than her spars with Pyrrha, though that was only because Cardin had enough confidence to talk. Yet no one bothered her about the why; they only questioned how she did it. After all, she broke six of his ribs and shattered one.

Ruby only laughed and dodged the question.

Most had thought she was a bit ashamed of breaking that many or some the opposite; they thought she should have added in a broken arm or two. In reality, Ruby skipped over the answer because it would give away too much. Not one who knew her main occupation could blame her for the secrecy. Pyrrha would certainly never reveal one of her inherent weaknesses, so why should Ruby?

Though being reminded of it bothered the silver-eyed girl. Velvet even figured out about the soft spot when the two met in the workshop the next day; Ruby was giving up her aura’s defense for her semblance’s speed.

However, there were other things to focus on, like the forest filled with Grimm that Professor Goodwitch led _children_ into. Sure, each one was armed with a weapon, but still, there were Grimm wandering throughout the Forever Forest.

“Remember children, we are here to collect sap, not fight pesky monsters. So make sure you cap off your jars and clean the taps,” the blonde professor calmly reminded the loose group of students following her. After a few more minutes of walking under the red trees, the cluster of Huntsmen-in-training stopped. “Now, each of you only needs one jar, so stay close and with your teams at all times. After all the sap is gathered, we may have time for some hunting before we have to go back.”

Piquing up at the mention of hunting, several students grabbed their partners and headed off to one of the nearby taps. As for Team RWBY, Yang was all too happy to drag Ruby off to one of the taps if the two could enjoy killing some Grimm. That left Blake to follow after her two teammates with her own jar. Meanwhile, Weiss begrudgingly stuck in shouting distance, but still went to her own tap.

“Almost done with this one, Rubes,” Yang called out over her shoulder, startling Ruby out of her thoughts. Twisting the tap to stop, the blonde caps off her jar. “Can’t wait to actually get some fighting done. Bet it’d be cool to see you fight an Ursa or something.”

“Trust me,” Blake spoke from a low-hanging tree branch, “She’s scarier fighting Grimm than when she fights people.”

“Oh, come on, you only say me fight one pesky monster, Blake,” the team leader indignantly whined to her partner, much to the amusement of the two older girls.

Taking up another jar to the tap, Yang twisted it again. After a few seconds, she noticed it just how slow the sap dripped out. “Looks like we’ll need another tap. This one’s slowin’ down.”

“That’s alright. I’ll find another tap,” Ruby declared as she picked up the last jar. Before her teammates could stop her, she already leaped into the trees, cloaked by her… color choices. Not her cloak. The narrator is trying, but they aren’t stooping that low.

Nevertheless, she used her little escapade as an excuse to check on her other friends. She knew Pyrrha would be fine, but a quick pass by the redhead reassured that knowledge. Next, she had to check on Jaune, who was out of earshot from his team, even if they shouted. Yet, instead of approaching him, she waited from a tree branch, where she was hidden by the bright red leaves.

Soon enough, her caution is rewarded.

“Well, well, look who we have here,” a boisterous voice booms out as its owner slips out from behind a tree. When Jaune turned around, he was given the sight of Cardin and his team, all appearing from the shadows like shady villains or questionable heroes. “Jauney boy’s all on his lonesome. Why don’t we give him some company, eh boys?”

“Uh… Hey there, Cardin,” Jaune stammered out as he shakily put his jar down. Standing up, his quivering legs were clear, even from Ruby’s perch. As such, she pulled out her scroll. “So, what brings you here?”

“Just here to check on my least favorite cheater,” he snarkily replied, “Bet you think now that you’ve got two pretty girls backing you up that you’re untouchable.” With his minions behind him, Cardin grabbed Jaune by the front of his jacket, lifting him up until his toes barely swiped the grass. “But don’t think that your fake transcripts aren’t already on their way to the headmaster, cause they’ve been there for days. Soon, you’ll be out of my hair, ain’t that right, boys?”

Jaune’s face could not scream horror anymore. Soon after his jaw locked into its open state, his skin went as white as paper and his limbs sunk in the brunette’s grasp.

“Not gonna put up a fight?” Cardin asked with a flash of his teeth, “Good, I’ve been needing a new punching bag.”

From her perch, Ruby steeled her nerves. Gone was Yang’s little sister and Blake’s weapon-loving partner. Now, she stared with cold, silver eyes over at the team of boys. A firm grasp rested on her collapsed weapon, ready to swing it at a moment’s notice. Yet, she was tight-lipped and still.

Below her, Jaune already felt the fury of Cardin’s punches to his face. The bully moved onto kneeing him in the gut while holding him against a tree. Nothing was stopping him. No freakishly fast pipsqueaks. No foreign champions. Not even that quiet guy was hanging around! He was free to beat up the cheater! Finally, some retribution for the bastard’s lies! He even got his revenge for that bitch who beat him up!

“Having fun?”

And it all came crashing down.

The chill of that hollow voice, those silver orbs that seemed to glow, and that crimson aura flashing in the thick of the tree. It all added up to his demise. And that didn’t count the scythe being wielded by the reaper.

He dropped Jaune and made a run for it, completely oblivious to the groan the blonde made as he slid down the bark of the tree. But he couldn’t get away. Rose petals and a flashing aura clouded his vision, only clearing up to leave him face-to-face with the girl of his nightmares.

So, he did the only thing he could. He bottled up his fear and exploded with fury, swinging his mace like a maniac. Roaring with each swing, his teammates backed him up unsuccessfully. None of them could hit the girl. Each swing and she would appear next to them and all they would hit was a cloud of petals.

“Stand still, you bitch!” Cardin shouted in absolute rage.

“Sorry, I couldn’t hear you.” Her hollow voice echoed in his ears, drained of all bubbliness or innocent joy. There was nothing left to give it substance. “How about you say it again?” she said as she appeared on his head, balancing on it with ease.

“Just stay still, bitch!” shouted the furious brunette, despite how anyone could point out how fruitless it was.

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Now, she was just taunting him and silently enjoying it. “Frankly, you don’t deserve it. None of you sorry excuses for humans do.” Her taunts spread to the other three, each of which leaped toward the girl as they tried to strike her. Once again, she disappeared, but this time, she appeared in the light of the clearing with her back to the opposing team.

It was bloody horrific. If they weren’t traumatized already, the boys certainly were now. Ruby’s back was slashed diagonally across, shown through the tear made through her cloak and shirt, both of which soaked in the freshly released blood. That wasn’t where it ended though. With a groan from the girl, her skin and muscles stitched themselves back together until all that was left from the gash was paper white skin.

Turning back to her opponents, she smirked. “Nice little curse, ain’t it?” Her hollow voice wasn’t what rang through their ears. Now, it was a cold voice flooded by loathing that swallowed up their attention. “I’ll tell you, it’s painful having every stitch and stretch of your body when it’s pulling itself together. But it won’t be as painful as what I’m going to do to you.”

On cue, each boy fainted on the spot. Lying there on the ground was a tempting over for Ruby to mutilate something and live up to her words. But mental warfare was enough. Trauma can be more painful than a flesh wound.

Leaving the team of boys there, she found Jaune in a worried mess next to his team and Ruby’s team, but those six teenagers had no clue what to do. Well, neither did Ruby.

“I took care of them,” said the silver-eyed girl to announce her presence, “They shouldn’t bother you or anyone else.”

“How far did you take it?” Pyrrha asked as Yang ran up to embrace Ruby.

“Just scared them a little. Nothing that’ll get me or anyone else in trouble.”

“Ruby, what happened to your clothes?” Yang was on the verge of shrieking as she felt the fabric’s torn edge. Grabbing the cloak, she could fit her whole fist through the hole. “What happened!”

“They got it a lucky shot in,” Ruby replied casually, most of the bubbliness returned to her voice and the hardened gaze she had worn now softened. Taking the cloak away from her sister, she shifted the clasp of it so the holes didn’t align behind her. “Don’t worry about it, I’m not hurt. It’s just my clothes and I was meaning to get a new combat outfit anyway. This one’s getting tight.”

“I’m glad you’re so calm about this, Miss Rose, but next time there’s a bullying problem, bring it to me.” Striding around the teenagers, Glynda went back from where Ruby had come, most likely off to gather the boys. Possibly after she gave them another punishment of her own making. “By the way, the hunt is canceled! Head back to the campus on your own,” the professor shouted, “Everyone should be on their way back already! Hurry up or you’ll have detention with me tomorrow!”

“Yes, professor!”

**End of Arc 1: Beacon Academy**

**Author's Note:**

> Caught up? How about a nice chat? Or you could just nerd out with me instead?  
> Join me in the [Mind's Refuge server!](https://discord.gg/jjZDpgF)


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